Thursday, June 2, 2011

Summer and Smoke (1961)

Notes: 6/2/11
Based on a Tennessee Williams play.
Eternity. It goes on and on.
Lots of Southern flavor. “I do declare!”
Geraldine Page plays Alma. Alma means 'soul'.
Laurence Harvey is the epitome of Southern hotness.
Una Merkel plays Alma's mother. It appears she is a nutjob.
Typically tragic, ironic, yearning Tennessee Williams drama.
Geraldine Page wears all of her emotion on her face.

Review: B
Well-acted Tennessee Williams drama focuses on Alma who is on the verge of a spinster's life while caring for her disturbed mother. Alma is in love with a young doctor who prefers a life of decadence to Alma's simpler ways. Geraldine Page wears every emotion on her face for her portrayal of Alma. Supporting cast is quite good, especially Una Merkel who makes her mother character sympathetic and believable in a handful of scenes. Not the most fascinating of all Williams adaptations but still entertaining.

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