Set in New Orleans, the film revolves around a woman who arrives to the city to live with her sister and brother-in-law in the hopes to regain her aristocratic lifestyle after some major losses in her life though her brother-in-law becomes troubled by her presence as he treats her cruelly. It is a film that explores a woman trying to maintain this illusion of being a Southern Belle as she left her hometown to find riches and such in New Orleans but she has to contend with this force of nature that is her brother-in-law. The film’s screenplay by Tennessee Williams that is based on his own play with contributions from Oscar Saul play into the plight that Blanche DuBois (Vivien Leigh) is enduring as she hopes to retain this identity even though she lost a lot as she had quit her job as an English middle school teacher. Blanche’s arrival at the apartment home of her sister Stella (Kim Hunter) would have Blanche deal with the fact that Stella lives in this dilapidated apartment with her husband Stanley Kowalski (Marlon Brando).
The script also includes Kowalski’s friend Mitch (Karl Malden) who takes a liking to Blanche where he even considers marrying her so that neither of them would be lonely yet Kowalski thinks the relationship is a bad idea as he has suspicions about Blanche though his brutish behavior towards her doesn’t help matters. Even as Blanche is critical towards both him and Stella as it adds discord to their relationship where some of Williams’ dialogue do play into these emotions but also into Blanche’s own disconnection with reality as if she is imagining about the world she wants to be in. Notably as it adds to this contrast to the world that Kowalski and Stella live in that is lively but also simple where not everyone has everything.
Elia Kazan’s direction definitely has this theatrical presentation as it is set largely in this apartment complex in the middle of the French Quarter in New Orleans with part of that area and other nearby places are shot. While there’s a few wide shots in the film to get a scope of the location as well as the apartment in its cramped and claustrophobic feel as it does serve as a character in the film. Kazan’s direction is focused more on intimacy with the usage of close-ups and medium shots as the latter is used to play into the tension between Blanche and Kowalski. It’s not just this claustrophobic atmosphere that adds to the drama but also in how it plays into Blanche’s own mental state as the walls would close in around her as it play into her refusal to accept the reality of her situation. Even as she wears these stylish and glamourous clothing that is a total contrast to the simpler yet ragged look of Kowalski as the latter is this symbol of sexual ferocity. Kazan also uses the location as well as heat as this intense atmosphere that adds to the drama including some of the tension between Blanche and Kowalski.
One key scene outside of the apartment is a party scene where it’s focused on this conversation between Blanche and Mitch where the latter gets to hear her story as it play into the former’s old life but also her past as Mitch would fall for her unaware that of her troubled mental state. Kazan’s compositions and usage of long shots play into the drama as well as scenes of Blanche trying to play up this façade of a world where everything is lit a certain way and everything has to be glamourous yet she still has to contend with this more cynical reality that is Kowalski. Even as the tension would boil into the third act as even Stella becomes tired of both of them as she is caught in the middle yet she loves both her husband and sister. The climax that relates to this boiling tension of Blanche’s fantasy and the harsh reality of Kowalski would finally collide as it lead to some harsh revelations as well as a real sense of loss for everyone. Overall, Kazan crafts a riveting and exhilarating film about a fallen Southern Belle trying to start a new life only to collide with the dark reality that is her brutish brother-in-law.
Cinematographer Harry Stradling does brilliant work with the film’s black-and-white photography with its stylish usage of shadows and lights for many of the interior scenes to help set the mood as well as play into Blanche’s refusal to see the reality of the world and who she really is. Editor David Weisbart does excellent work with the editing as it is straightforward with some rhythmic cuts to play into the dramatic suspense. Art directors Richard Day and Bertram Tuttle, with set decorator George Hopkins, do amazing work with the look of the apartment as well as some of its exteriors as it help play into the atmosphere of the film as well as the claustrophobic tone whenever Blanche deals with reality. Costume designer Lucinda Ballard does fantastic work with the ragged look of Kowalski including his ripped t-shirts as well as some of the more glamourous look of Blanche that would become more ragged as the film progresses.
Makeup artist Gordon Bau does nice work with the look of Blanche from this attempt at a clean and refined hairstyle as well as the makeup to make herself look younger as it only play into this idea of a fantasy that she wants to hold on to. The sound work of Nathan Levinson and C.A. Riggs is superb for the atmosphere that it creates as it help play into the dramatic tension that occurs in the film that also includes sparse sounds of what is happening outside of the apartment. The film’s music by Alex North is incredible for its rich and eerie orchestral score that includes this theme for Blanche that is only heard by her as it’s chilling and offbeat while the rest of the music is soaring with its string arrangements that is mixed in with bits of New Orleans jazz.
The film’s wonderful ensemble cast feature some notable small roles from August Kuhn as a sailor Blanche meets upon her arrival to New Orleans, Richard Garrick as a doctor who appears late in the film, Ann Dere as a mysterious matron that only Blanche sees, Wright King as a young collector that Blanche meets in the middle of the film, Rudy Bond and Nick Dennis in their respective roles as Kowalski and Mitch’s poker buddies Steve and Pablo, and Peg Hillas in an excellent performance as the apartment complex landlady Eunice who often takes Stella in whenever Kowalski gets intense as well as someone who doesn’t like him much at all. Karl Malden is brilliant as Mitch as a friend of Kowalski who served in the war with him as he becomes fascinated by Blanche as he hopes to be with her as it’s a role that has Malden display some vulnerability and sensitivity but also someone who doesn’t take shit from anyone although he’s unaware of the trouble he’s in when it comes to Blanche.
Kim Hunter is amazing as Stella Kowalski as Blanche’s sister who finds herself in the middle of this conflict as she deeply loves both her sister and her husband while also dealing with her impending pregnancy and the chaos at her home. Vivien Leigh is phenomenal as Blanche DuBois as this former English middle-school teacher who was once this revered Southern Belle as she is trying to retain whatever glory she had as she has trouble dealing with her new reality where Leigh displays this air of charm but also anguish in a complex and dangerous performance. Finally, there’s Marlon Brando in an outstanding performance as Stanley Kowalski as this force of nature who doesn’t just exude raw sexuality in his appearance but also a rage of a man who feels threatened by Blanche as he would treat her with cruelty and disdain. It is this performance that is intense where Brando and Leigh do display a great sense of rapport in this performance as well as bringing in two different ideas into their performances that makes them a highlight to watch.
A Streetcar Named Desire is a sensational film from Elia Kazan that features tremendous performances from Vivien Leigh, Kim Hunter, and Karl Malden as well as a breakthrough performance from Marlon Brando. Along with its claustrophobic setting, themes of fantasy vs. reality, its intense yet dark approach to melodrama, and Alex North’s exhilarating music score. It is a film that explore two different people having to live together as it explore some of the darkest aspects of human nature but also loss at its most extreme. In the end, A Streetcar Named Desire is an incredible film from Elia Kazan.
Elia Kazan Films: (A Tree Grows in Brooklyn) – (The Sea of Grass) – (Boomerang!) – (Gentleman’s Agreement) – (Pinky) – (Panic in the Streets) – (Viva Zapata!) – (Man on a Tightrope) – On the Waterfront - East of Eden – (Baby Doll) – (A Face in the Crowd) – (Wild River) – Splendor in the Grass – (America America) – (The Arrangement) – (The Visitors (1972 film)) – (The Last Tycoon)
© thevoid99 2021
Based on the novel by Margaret Mitchell, Gone with the Wind is the story of a plantation owner’s daughter and her pursuit towards a man only to be pursued by another gentleman who tries to get her to see things differently. Produced by David O. Selznick, directed by Victor Fleming, with additional directing by George Cukor and Sam Wood, and screenplay by Sidney Howard. The film is an epic romantic drama that play into a woman coping with her romantic feelings while dealing with the chaos of the American Civil War. Starring Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, Olivia de Haviland, Leslie Howard, and Hattie McDaniel. Gone with the Wind is a sprawling and monumental film from producer David O. Selznick.
Told in the span of 12 years during the American Civil War and its aftermath, the film follows the life of the daughter of a plantation owner whose infatuation for a man leads her to being pursued by another man as she deals with her own desires and passion amidst the chaos and turmoil of the American Civil War. It’s a film that explore the journey of a woman who has known a life of comfort and luxury in the American South just days before the Civil War began as she would later endure all sorts of trials and tribulations yet would also embark on relationships either for social or financial gain as a way to fill the void for her heart’s desire as she would attract the attention of a man who admires her spirit. Even as she would get a lot of things in her life but her love for this other man who would be married to another woman who would also become a dear friend to her would also play into her undoing.
The film’s screenplay by Sidney Howard, with un-credited contributions from Ben Hecht, Jo Swerling, Oliver H.P. Garrett, and John Van Druten, play into the journey that Scarlett O’Hara (Vivien Leigh) would embark on in her pursuit of longtime family friend Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard) hoping to be married to him. However, Wilkes is engaged to his cousin Melanie Hamilton (Olivia de Haviland) which upsets O’Hara as she would continuously pine for Wilkes as well as get the attention of a guest in Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) who is intrigued by O’Hara. The first act is about the events before and during the war as O’Hara tries to pursue Wilkes yet would later engage into a couple of marriages that would be doomed with the first marriage to Melanie’s younger brother Charles (Rand Brooks) and then to his sister’s fiancé Frank Kennedy (Carroll Nye) in the film’s second act. It has a unique structure with its first half being about the early years of the war but also Sherman’s march through Georgia that would destroy nearly everything as well as the life that O’Hara and the people that she knew would be gone.
It’s not just in the structure of the script that is crucial to the film with its second half playing into the aftermath of the Civil War and the Reconstruction period but also into some of the development of the characters. While O’Hara would be humbled by the sense of loss she endured including around her family home of Tara, there is still this foolish pursuit of Wilkes who admits to having feelings for her but is still in love with Melanie. Melanie turns out to be a far more interesting character in terms of her gracefulness as well as being a person of reason where she seems to know more of what is going on rather than be oblivious. Then there’s Butler who is a man of charm but also someone who understands what is important as he does whatever he can to help out other people where he would really come into play in the film’s third act as someone who puts duty and family over everything else rather than O’Hara who is concerned with trying to live a lifestyle and pine for Wilkes.
The film’s direction by Victor Fleming is definitely sprawling in terms of its setting and grand visuals. Shot largely on studio and locations in Southern California including the studios in Los Angeles and Ventura County, the film does recreate this world of the American South that is lavish and full of ideals with a thriving economy and such despite the fact that they enjoyed the idea of slavery even though O’Hara and her family actually treat their slaves kinder than others in the maid Mammy (Hattie McDaniel) who would often put O’Hara in her place as well as run the house. With some contributions from George Cukor and Sam Wood during parts of the production, Fleming is able to maintain this atmosphere for much of the film’s early parts of the first act as this serene world yet there is something about that feels false due to the imagery of slavery where it is painted romantically which is far from what really did happen. When the horrors of war would emerge, the fantasy that O’Hara and her fellow Southerners had been living in burned right in front of their faces.
The usage of the wide shots including the grand detail in the crane shots that Fleming uses in a scene where O’Hara tries to find a doctor for Melanie as it’s presented in a small wide shot and then this vast crane to show all of these dead and wounded soldiers. The usage of tracking and dolly shots along with some of the presentation of the action including the scenes of the burning of Atlanta are among some of the finest usage of scenery during the first half of the film. The second act which is about the aftermath and O’Hara’s desire to return to Tara with an ailing Melanie and her baby in tow along with the maid Prissy (Butterfly McQueen). The second half begins with the rebuilding of Tara but also the arrival of the carpetbaggers as it would play into O’Hara trying to create a life similar to what she had despite having to live in Atlanta and at a smaller home. Due to her desire to make more money, she would eventually encounter a shantytown and trouble leading to an incident where it would be Butler that would help her out once again leading to their marriage and the film’s third act.
The third act is definitely the most dramatic as it play into Butler and O’Hara’s marriage and family life as well as what Butler is trying to create in this post-Civil War lifestyle that is sort of similar to the past but with some major differences. The usage of the close-ups and medium shots help play into the drama with some striking compositions as well as moments that are ambiguous. Notably in a scene where Butler would take O’Hara up to their room where even though it’s presented in a romantic tone, it does raises question into the idea of marital rape although Butler is later appalled by his actions. There is that ambiguity as it all play into O’Hara’s foolish pursuit towards Wilkes with Butler feeling spurned by what is happening as he thinks about their daughter as well as Melanie whom he cares for as a friend. Its ending is about not just this air of foolishness for both Butler and O’Hara but also in some serious revelations for both of them. Overall, producer David O. Selznick and director Victor Fleming create a spectacularly rich and majestic film about a Southern gentleman wooing a spoiled plantation daughter during the backdrop of the American Civil War and its aftermath.
Cinematographers Ernest Haller, Lee Garmes, and Ray Rennahan do amazing work with the film’s gorgeous Technicolor cinematography with its usage of colors for some scenes in the sunlight along with its usage of shadows as well as the grand detail into how vibrant the exteriors are in times when it was rich as well as how harrowing it looks following the events of the Civil War. Editors Hal C. Kern and James E. Newcom do excellent work with the editing with its usage of rhythmic cuts to play into the action and drama as well as letting shots play on for some of the film’s big moments. Production designer William Cameron Menzies, with set decorator Howard Bristol and art director Lyle Wheeler, does amazing work with the look of the mansion and land that is Tara along with some of the lavish homes of the Wilkes and many others as well as some of the ruined places and Atlanta post-Civil War. Costume designer Walter Plunkett does fantastic work with the costumes from the lavish design of the dresses and hats the women wear along with the suits and uniforms the men wore.
The visual effects work of Jack Cosgrove, Fred Albin, and Arthur Johns is terrific for some of the backdrops that is created including the scenes during the Fall of Atlanta with its images of fire. Sound recordist Thomas T. Moulton and sound editor Gordon Sawyer do superb work with the sound as it play into the atmosphere of the parties as well as the sounds of war. The film’s music by Max Steiner is incredible for its soaring and majestic orchestral score with its sweeping string arrangements and lush orchestral themes along with its take on traditional music of the times including Dixie.
The casting by Charles Richards and Fred Schuessler is marvelous for the massive ensemble that is assembled for the film as it feature some notable small roles from Cammie King Conlon as Rhett and Scarlett’s daughter Bonnie, Mickey Kuhn as Ashley and Melanie’s son Beau, Louis Jean Heydt as a Confederate soldier holding the baby Beau, Olin Howland as a carpetbagger businessman, Ward Bond as a Yankee captain trying to find suspects over a shantytown attack, Leona Roberts as Mrs. Meade, Harry Davenport as Dr. Meade, Laura Hopes Crew as Melanie’s Aunt Pittypat Hamilton, Everett Brown as the O’Hara’s field foreman Big Sam who would later save Scarlett at the shantytown, Victor Jory as the field overseer Jonas, Butterfly McQueen as the house servant Prissy who helps Scarlett with Melanie, Paul Hurst as a Yankee deserter trying to rob Tara, Howard Hickman as Ashley’s father John, George Reeves and Fred Crane in their respective roles as Scarlett’s brothers Stuart and Brent, and Ona Munson in a fantastic performance as the brothel madam Belle Watling as a woman who is known for a certain reputation yet is someone far more intriguing as she is a friend of Butler as well as someone Melanie admires.
Rand Brooks and Carroll Nye are terrific in their respective roles as Melanie’s brother Charles and Frank Kennedy as two men who would marry Scarlett in different periods in Scarlett’s life only to be unaware that she doesn’t love either of them. Evelyn Keyes and Ann Rutherford are wonderful in their respective roles as Scarlett’s sisters in Suellen and Carreen with the former as the younger of the two who really hates Scarlett for being bossy. Thomas Mitchell and Barbara O’Neal are superb in their respective roles as Scarlett’s parents in Gerald and Ellen O’Hara with the former being an Irishman trying to hold on to his land and ideals during the dark days of the war. Leslie Howard is excellent as Ashley Wilkes as the object of desire for Scarlett as a gentleman who joins the Confederacy as an officer as he deals with the realities of war while is torn for his love for Melanie but also his own feelings for Scarlett although he’s someone with not much personality.
Hattie McDaniel is brilliant as the housemaid Mammy as a woman who always says what is on her mind and doesn’t take shit from anyone while also running the house as she is sort of the film’s conscience despite being a sort of typical and subservient figure for the O’Hara family. Olivia de Haviland is amazing as Melanie Wilkes as Ashley’s cousin/wife who is a woman of grace and understanding as well as being the smartest person out there as it relates to Scarlett’s feelings for Ashley but also is someone who can bring the best in someone as well as be a sense of warmth for those feeling sad.
Vivien Leigh is remarkable as Scarlett O’Hara as this spoiled daughter of a plantation owner whose pursuit of Ashley would put her into foolish situations or moments by chance as it is a wild and over-the-top performance of a woman that is so intent on winning Ashley while at times being humbled and forced to swallow her pride. Finally, there’s Clark Gable in a tremendous performance as Rhett Butler as a Southern gentleman from Charleston who charms his way into any situations while being fascinated by Scarlett and her passion as well as being someone that is willing to humble her as well as cope with his own shortcomings including how he’s been unable to try and win over her due to her feelings for Ashley.
Gone with the Wind is an astonishingly rich and sensational film from Victor Fleming and producer David O. Selznick. Featuring a great cast, gorgeous visuals, a soaring music score, top-notch production values, and a story of love and pursuit during the era of the American Civil War and its aftermath. It’s a film that is grand in its visuals and tone despite some of romanticism towards the time of the American South and its ideas of slavery. In the end, Gone with the Wind is a spectacular film from Victor Fleming and producer David O. Selznick.
© thevoid99 2019
