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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Tennessee Williams (play)
Richard Brooks (screenplay)
Release Date:
21 March 1962 (USA) more
Tagline:
Provocative Adult Entertainment more
Plot:
Drifter Chance Wayne returns to his hometown after many years of trying to make it in the movies. With... more | add synopsis
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 2 wins & 6 nominations more
NewsDesk:
Rip Torn Film Festival Now At Anthology Film Archives In NY
(From CinemaRetro. 6 March 2009, 8:02 AM, PST)
User Comments:
The film has a splendid array of impressive performances… more (28 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Paul Newman | ... | Chance Wayne |
 | Geraldine Page | ... | Alexandra Del Lago |
 | Shirley Knight | ... | Heavenly Finley |
 | Ed Begley | ... | Tom 'Boss' Finley |
 | Rip Torn | ... | Thomas 'Tom' J. Finley, Jr. |
| Mildred Dunnock | ... | Aunt Nonnie |
| Madeleine Sherwood | ... | Miss Lucy |
| Philip Abbott | ... | Dr. George Scudder |
 | Corey Allen | ... | Scotty |
| Barry Cahill | ... | Bud |
| Dub Taylor | ... | Dan Hatcher |
| James B. Douglas | ... | Leroy (as James Douglas) |
| Barry Atwater | ... | Ben Jackson |
| Charles Arnt | ... | Mayor Henricks |
| Dorothy Konrad | ... | Mrs. Maribelle Norris |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
120 min | Australia:106 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Metrocolor)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Westrex Recording System)
Certification:
UK:15 (re-rating) (1996) | UK:X (original rating) | Australia:M | Finland:K-18 | Sweden:15
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Had its premier at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. The theater has been restored today and shows historic and retro films. more
Goofs:
Errors in geography: The film depicts St. Cloud Florida on the Gulf of Mexico. In reality, St. Cloud is 80 miles inland. more
Quotes:
Chance Wayne: I like you. You are a nice monster. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in Unknown White Male (2005) more
Soundtrack:
It's a Big, Wide, Wonderful World more
FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (28 total)
Message Boards
Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Sweet Bird of Youth (1962) moreRecommendations
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Related Links
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| News articles | IMDb Drama section | IMDb USA section |
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Chance Wayne (Newman) has only one talent—sexual prowess—and he's been bumming around for several years, satisfying rich women in the hope that he can find fame in Hollywood…
He picks up a faded screen star, Alexandra Del Lago (magnificently played by Geraldine Page), who takes constant refuge in vodka, hashish, oxygen masks and young studs… She promises to get him a movie contract, and they drive to his Southern hometown, where he plans to find his sweetheart, Heavenly Finley (Shirley Knight), and take her along to Hollywood… He doesn't know that on his last visit he left her pregnant, that she had an abortion, and that her father, the corrupt and vigorous politician Boss Finley (Ed Begley), is out to get him…
Through a strong, powerful performance, Newman managed to be a celebrity—dropping names, giving large tips, arrogantly stating: "Just because a man's successful doesn't mean he has to forget his hometown."
He's also extremely sneaky and gently tolerant, as he charms Alexandra while recording what she's saying for blackmail purposes… But he's finally pathetic: a desperately insecure man, addicted to amphetamines, attending to Alexandra and performing as a lover at her whim… His mask of swaggering bravura really disappears when he tries to see Heavenly… He becomes confused and desperate—walking with regular steps, rubbing his hands together, pleading urgently over the phone…