Synopsis
Four Oscar–winning actors—Marlon Brando, Anna Magnani, Joanne Woodward, and Maureen Stapleton—sink their teeth into this enthralling film, which brings together the legendary talents of director Sidney Lumet and writer Tennessee Williams. A smoldering, snakeskin-jacketed Brando is Val Xavier, a drifter trying to go straight. He finds work and solace in a southern small-town variety store run by the married, sexually frustrated Lady Torrance (Magnani), who proves as much a temptation for Val as local wild child Carol Cutrere(Woodward). Lumet captures the intense, fearless performances and Williams’s hot-blooded storytelling and social critique with his customary restraint, resulting in a drama of uncommon sophistication and craft.
Cast
| Valentine “Snakeskin” Xavier | Marlon Brando |
| Lady Torrance | Anna Magnani |
| Carol Cutrere | Joanne Woodward |
| Jabe Torrance | Victor Jory |
| Vee Talbot | Maureen Stapleton |
| Sheriff Jordan Talbot | R. G. Armstrong |
| David Cutrere | John Baragrey |
| Uncle Pleasant | Emory Richardson |
Credits
| Director | Sidney Lumet |
| Producer | Richard Shepherd and Martin Jurow |
| Cinematography | Boris Kaufman |
| Screenplay | Tennessee Williams and Meade Roberts |
| Based on the play Orpheus Descending by | Tennessee Williams |
| Music | Kenyon Hopkins |
| Art direction | Richard Sylbert |
| Editing | Carl Lerner |
| Associate producer | George Justin |
| Assistant director | Charles H. Maguire |
| Sound | James Gleason |
| Costume designer | Frank L. Thompson |
Disc Features
DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION DOUBLE-DVD SET
- New, restored high-definition digital transfer, approved by director Sidney Lumet
- New video interview with Lumet
- Three Plays by Tennessee Williams, an hour-long television presentation of one-act plays, directed by Lumet in 1958, with Ben Gazarra and Lee Grant, among others
- New video program discussing the playwright’s work in Hollywood and The Fugitive Kind
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic David Thomson
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The Man Who Came To Lunch with his laugh
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