A Streetcar Named Desire

Elia Kazan's adaptation of the Tennessee Williams play, A Streetcar Named Desire, was a terrifying film when it came out, exploring ideas of abuse and mental illness. Fifty-six years later, it still shocks your blocks.

It launched Marlon Brando's career, and with no surprise, either. Brando steals the show, eclipsing every other actor on screen. He's Stanley Kowalski, a working-class Polish descendant, complete with sweat-stained fitted T-shirts and a vulgar mouth. His wife is Stella Dubois, from a formerly wealthy upper-class house, and the differences between them are obvious, especially when Stella's sister, Blanche, comes to stay.

I watched the film at the double feature at the Chauvel, coupled with East of Eden, James Dean's first movie... Dean idolized Brando, using his angry swagger for his own persona.

Blanche is played by Vivian Leigh, who brings the same Scarlett O'Hara act that she was known for. She plays her character like a Southern Belle, albeit one that has seen better days.

Kazan films his actors tightly together in the New Orleans apartment; the screen feels tightly packed as they quarrel and fight. Brando's imposing physique holds the women in thrall - Blanche in fear, Stella in undisguised lust.

It's an interesting story - Stanley Kowalski is an animal, a savage, even. He represents a different part of America than the Dubois women do, and one that is taking over the country.

Again, fifty-six years later, the film hasn't dated on this point. America is still divided between rich and poor, with the exception that the rich have become poorer, and the ultra-rich are holding all the sacks of money. It's a frightening regression, and one that would be appealing to the animal in Stanley Kowalski: wars, dissatisfaction and Paris Hilton.

A Streetcar Named Desire is still thrilling after all these years, with the plot details dripping at a slow pace and Williams' literate script sound poetic from the Southern Belles. After its release, the film won four Academy Awards and was nominated for eight others. In 1999, the film was preserved in the National Film Registry, and in 2007, the Chauvel played it on a Sunday. Time has only dirtied the original film reels, but the content is still as gripping as it ever was.