Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)

The only son of wealthy widow Violet Venable dies while on vacation with his cousin Catherine. What the girl saw was so horrible that she went insane; now Mrs. Venable wants Catherine lobotomized to cover up the truth.

Director:

Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Writers:

Tennessee Williams (play), Gore Vidal (screenplay),

Stars:

Elizabeth Taylor, Katharine Hepburn, Montgomery Clift

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Elizabeth Taylor	...	Catherine Holly
Katharine Hepburn	...	Mrs. Violet Venable
Montgomery Clift	...	Dr. Cukrowicz
Albert Dekker	...	Dr. Lawrence J. Hockstader
Mercedes McCambridge	...	Mrs. Grace Holly
Gary Raymond	...	George Holly
Mavis Villiers	...	Miss Foxhill
Patricia Marmont	...	Nurse Benson
Joan Young	...	Sister Felicity
Maria Britneva	...	Lucy
Sheila Robbins	...	Dr. Hockstader's Secretary
David Cameron	...	Young Blonde Interne

Storyline

A wealthy harridan, Violet Venable, attempts to bribe Dr. Cukrowicz, a young psycho-surgeon from a New Orleans mental hospital that is desperately in need of funds, into lobotomizing her niece, Catherine Holly. Violet wants the operation performed in order to prevent Catherine from defiling the memory of her son, the poet Sebastian. Catherine has been babbling obscenely about Sebastian's mysterious death that she witnessed while on holiday together in Spain the previous summer.

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Plot Keywords:

poet | operation | mental institution | lobotomy | widow | 

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Taglines:

These are powers and passions without precedent in motion pictures!

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 December 1959 (USA)

Also Known As:

De repente en el verano

Filming Locations:

Bagur, Girona, Cataluña, Spain

Box Office

Budget:

$3,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Horizon Pictures (II), Academy Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Patricia Neal played the lead role to so much acclaim on the London stage she was sure she would be given the part in the film adaptation, even without her agent promoting her the job. She then woke up in shock to find Elizabeth Taylor had been assigned the role.

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Goofs

At the films opening a title says, "1935" but the films hair, makeup and costumes are obviously 1959.

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Quotes

Mrs. Venable: Sebastian saw the face of God.

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Connections

Referenced in The Boys in the Band (1970)

User Reviews

The Name Tennessee Williams Says It All

In 1930's New Orleans, a wealthy and eccentric older woman named Mrs. Venable (Katharine Hepburn), wants a surgeon (Montgomery Clift) to perform a lobotomy on her niece (Elizabeth Taylor), for reasons that become clear toward the end of the film. This macabre Tennessee Williams story, with overlapping adult themes, must surely have been a shock to audiences in 1959. The film provides a great vehicle for the talents of both Hepburn whose acting is engaging, and Taylor whose performance is superb.

The Mankiewicz script is very talky. The characters of both Hepburn and Taylor engage in lengthy and at times tedious monologues. In all that talking, at least there are some really good lines. My favorite is near the beginning. In a nonchalant tone, Mrs. Venable tells us about the daily vicissitudes of Lady, the Venus flytrap that Mrs. Venable keeps in her garden. "Lady must be kept under glass, and while she is under glass, we have to provide her with flies, flown in at great expense." Priceless.

As one would expect for a film derived from a stage play, cinematography and music are less important than dialogue and acting. "Suddenly Last Summer" is worth viewing for its unusual story, and for the acting accomplishments of Hepburn and Taylor.