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Rating: 5 out of 5
I have always heard about the movie, A Streetcar Named Desire. For the longest time, I always skipped over it. Please don’t ask me why but I never seemed interested in it. Maybe it was because it was made after a play and I am not too fond of watching plays. I don’t know the exact reason why I never watch the film.
I am here to tell you that I was missing out, and you should definitely spend time watching this movie. God damn was the acting good in this movie. The whole cast was outstanding, and I am actually shocked that Marlon Brando didn’t win the Academy Award for this role, which he lost to Humphrey Bogart. Director Elia Kazan did a masterful job at making a thrilling film.
A Streetcar Named Desire starts off when Blanche DuBois (Leigh), a high school English teacher with an aristocratic background from Auriol, Mississippi, arrives in New Orleans. She decided to move to New Orleans and live with her sister Stella (Hunter) and brother-in-law Stanley Kowalski (Brando) after creditors take over the family estate called Belle Reve. Blanche has also decided to take a break from teaching as she states a situation has completely messed with her mental state. Knowing nothing of the way her sister lives, she is shocked to find the state they live in. Upon first meeting, each other, Blanche and Stanley, have a combative relationship. Blanche finds Stanley’s hyper-masculinity, brutish, and caveman-like as he often displays physical outbursts when he is drunk. Stanley finds Blanche’s princess-like attitude as an act and believes she has sold Belle Reve and keeping all the profits for herself. Stella becomes pregnant while Blanche starts dating one of Stanley’s friends named Mitch (Malden). As time goes on, Blanche and Stanley’s relationship deteriorates until Stanley uncovers the real reason Blanche left.
That MUST be applauded in this whole film is the acting. If you want to see some GREAT acting, then watch this film. The entire casts does a PHENOMENAL job at portraying their craft. Let’s start off with Vivien Leigh as Blanche. Leigh did a phenomenal job as Blanche. In the beginning, you think she is just a rich woman that has fallen on hard times, but as time goes on, you think something is truly “off.” Leigh does such a fantastic job showing the major mental breakdown of Blanche. Show she spoke softly and elegantly, and her movements were so strange, to begin with. She put shades over the light bulbs to make it dark, and she wore fancy dresses. Not too out of the ordinary. When she entirely went off the deep end, she spoke erratically, always looking around like she was on something. This is shown with her final confrontation with Stanley. She wore an elegant dress with her tiara. She kept saying one thing and then changed her story when confronted. Her eyes became so wide when Stanley spoke to her. She was totally off her rocker at the end, and you feel somewhat bad for her.
Brando was excellent in his second role ever. Now I will say this, you can see why women would fall over Brando. The dude had the looks back in the day. I don’t know how he didn’t win the Academy Award for his performance. Brando straight-up owned this role. He was hulking but a brute and an animal as he walked around his small apartment. He was like a wild caveman, and his girl Stella fell all over him. Brando showed that Stanley had that “it” factor about him. The subtle way, he smiled and chewed his gum. The dude could’ve been a player, but he was an a-hole.
A major theme of this film seems to be on domestic violence and passion. It seems like every woman is either getting pushed or yelled at. I tell you this, someone would’ve gotten cut if it was today. Maybe that is the theme and wanted to show that these women had an extreme love for their spouse. A primary example was when Stanley gets drunk and hits Stella. A total No, No! She runs upstairs. Stanley yells, “Stella! Hey, Stella!” Like under a spell, Stella comes out and looks dreamy at Stanley.
Passion seems to be wanted throughout the film. Blanche looks for passion and love from a suitor who comes in the form of Mitch. She wants to be loved and taken care of. Stella has a deep passion and love for her husband even though he is a brute. Everyone seems to be looking for
Kazan must get praise for his direction and making the story as it was. Everything happened in one small area, and it made you feel like you were in New Orleans. If anyone knows me, I love me some New Orleans. If anyone knows me, I love me some New Orleans. The imagery and feel were New Orleans. How everyone talked about the heat and showed it with their sweaty shirts. Kazan also showed great direction when it came to Blanche’s mental breakdown. With her descent, Kazan showed an old woman that represented death in the shadows. An eerie image for a person in her state.
A Streetcar Named Desire is a phenomenal movie with phenomenal acting. I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with this film. I am amazed that I took so long to watch it. Brando and Leigh were absolutely fantastic in it. Leigh was top notch and glad she won the Academy Award.
