Rent Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)

A cinema triumvirate - Suddenly, Last Summer review by RhysH

Taylor, Hepburn and Clift take it turns to dominate a scene.

Elizabeth Taylor cannot help looking glamorous even in those scenes in which she is suppose to be dowdy and when she is allowed to wear a "nice" dress she looks fabulous. She gives a nuanced performance and excels in the final speeches of the Tennessee Williams play. The speeches could have stood on their own without the background flashbacks.

Katherine Hepburn's voice oozes charm and vitriol, often in the same sentence.

it is said that Montgomery Clift had some difficulty completing the longer scenes. He had a car crash three years earlier and had some dependency on painkillers and alcohol. Sometimes the joins in scenes are clearly visible with Clift, in close up, repeating the line of another character or simply saying "go on". It is a great, understated, troubled performance.

Did Hepburn really spit in the face of the director Mankiewicz at the end of the film because of his treatment of Clift?

Gripping Yet Clunky - Suddenly, Last Summer review by griggs

This is a weirdly gripping yet clunky psychological drama with a horror-ish vibe. There’s not a single bad performance—Hepburn, Taylor, and Clift are all on top form—but the film gives you so much time to figure things out that, 25 minutes in, you’ve basically cracked it and are just waiting for the big reveal. There’s a nice bit of sexual ambiguity, and when it works, it really works, but in between, it just lumbers along, getting more ridiculous as it goes. Still, it’s entertaining in its own odd way, even if it takes its sweet time getting there.