As the Warner Brothers 50 Film Collection moves into a new decade, the first movie from the 1950s is another story based on a play: Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire (which I will refer to simply as Streetcar to signal my credibility to the readers!).
Streetcar (see?!?) directed by Real American Elia Kazan, tells a very “small” story, reflecting its stage roots. The crux of the plot is that a woman named Stella has a nutty sister (Blanche) who arrives in New Orleans to live with Stella and her abusive husband Stanley. Blanche’s past is mysterious, and her behavior is odd—she needs frequent praise for her looks, a point her sister drives home more than once. Blanche also perpetually asks questions about what people think about her. The eventual revelations about her past are interesting, but not unexpected, given her strange conduct throughout the film.
Story aside, there are problems with the dialogue. Jeepers, this dialogue. It’s more music than words, for better and for worse. The sounds portray the intensity and emotion of the scene, but nobody talks this way. Not in 2014. Not in 1951.
The lines sound exactly like what they are: Short, impactful doses of words designed to hold the attention of the couple in the last row of a playhouse. Viewed with the scrutiny of a close-up on a large screen, they get silly very quickly.
Also note that we’re still in an era of acting that favored broad, melodramatic performances. The fact that the source material is a stage production only ups that particular ante. Vivien Leigh, funny and excellent in the 30s epic Gone with the Wind, now seems a little out-of-place in the 1950s, especially acting alongside Marlon Brando.
In fact, seeing Brando and Leigh together is a bit jarring. It’s almost as if they’re acting in two different movies. Or, more properly, Leigh is acting in a melodrama from the 1940s, and Brando is delivering something close to a “modern” performance.
Brando is acting. Leigh is ACTING!
The contrast doesn’t do Leigh any favors, although she won another Best Actress Oscar for her performance.
Karl Malden and Kim Hunter swept the supporting role Oscars as well. In fact—incredibly—Marlon Brando is the only primary cast member who didn’t win an Oscar for his performance in Streetcar. Seen from a contemporary perspective, that seems quite odd. I think it’s also probably surprising for people who only know this movie from the “STELLA!!!” scene to discover that Brando easily has the most subtlety and nuance.
But, again, that’s not entirely Leigh’s fault. Some of her lines are a volcano of unnatural syllables, particularly strange to hear erupting from the mouth of a past-her-prime Mississippi schoolteacher. However, there are also moments like (to pick just one) her reaction when Brando gives her the bus ticket back home that illustrate the broad tone of Leigh’s performance.
So we noticed.
In some ways, the character Leigh plays here is where we might imagine an older Scarlett O’Hara would wind up at the same age—alone, alcoholic, missing her erstwhile beauty and lost family estate. The difference is that O’Hara, at bottom, had a resilient, capable spirit. Blanche is a mess who just gets messier over the course of two hours.
Brando is the major selling point for me. His is the first performance I’ve seen in this collection that wouldn’t have seemed bizarre 20 years later. His popularity coupled with his different approach to acting would help usher in a shift toward a more natural, realistic approach to the craft.
This is ultimately a story about two very flawed people (and one who loves and tolerates both of them). Brando is great. Leigh’s effort won her an Academy Award, but was the sort of performance whose days as Oscar-winning were numbered. Hunter and Malden fall somewhere in-between.
Streetcar was rated as one of the 100 best films in movie history by AFI. One of the 50 best, in fact. As always, there’s a risk of a disconnect watching it for the first time more than a half-century after its initial release. However, I don’t think it merits that level of acclaim.
That’s not to say it isn’t a good film. Of course it is. But I just can’t get past the unnatural stage dialogue or the antiquated performance of Leigh juxtaposed with Brando’s must-see naturalism.
The last of the three Humphrey Bogart films in the 
Three weeks ago, I discussed the 
The last of the films in the Warner Bros. 50 Film Collection released before the end of World War II is 1942’s Casablanca. The Humphrey Bogart / Ingrid Bergman drama followed 
There are times when I say of these films something like, “If you consider yourself a film buff, you have to watch this movie.” The implication is that you’re watching the movie because of historical significance, not because of actual, intrinsic greatness that still exists today.
As it turns out, Mrs. Miniver is about a middle-clash English family’s life during World War II, beginning in 1939. That’s noteworthy for two reasons. First, the film was released in 1942 and was based on a popular book from 1940. World War II was still very much unsettled when this film was in theaters.
RAW in Richmond
Due to a last-minute offer of (excellent) tickets, I was able to catch Monday Night RAW in person at the Richmond Coliseum this week. Here, in no particular order, are some observations and live impressions that I’ll jot down before loading up the television version from my DVR.
1. First and foremost—the crowd was excellent. Richmond has been a hotbed for big wrestling shows for decades, and the audience was a great mix of young and old. There was definitely a “multi-generation” feel. Most importantly, Richmond crowds strike the perfect balance for wrestling. The crowds here are very “hot” (loud and enthusiastic), unlike a typical crowd in, say, Phoenix. However, they also don’t try to make themselves the show, like a crowd in certain major East Coast cities. Richmond finds that sweet spot: An East Coast intensity with an old-school willingness not to be too-cool-for-school, contrarian dicks. We cheer for faces and boo heels, here. We enjoy wrestling unironically. Imagine that! (But see also #8 and #9 below)
Absolutely perfect view
2. It’s been almost three years since I last attended a live WWE event. The operation has been silky-smooth for years, but, incredibly, it’s even more impressive now. Changes to the ring or set happen instantly as a phalanx of black-clad employees scurry to and fro during commercial breaks or backstage vignettes. The amount of “moving parts” is staggering, but everyone seems to know exactly where to be and what to be doing at all times. That’s even true when things don’t go as planned due to, say, an injury.
3. We were in a suite, the best part of which (aside from having our own bathroom) was the incredible sightline. Even when I’ve had good or great seats in the past, the sightlines haven’t been as clean as Monday night’s. The view of both the stage and the ring were completely unobstructed. As a bonus, Roman Reigns entered through the crowd about 25 feet to our left.
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