A Streetcar Named Desire

Wow. Still reeling from this one several hours later. What a true and deep and affecting performance from Jessica Lange plus the usual intelligent and imaginative choices from Alec Baldwin. I've seen a few productions of this, plus the Brando movie. I have never before been left with such depth of feeling for ALL of those characters trying to find their feet again in the conflicts and complexities of that post World War 2 society.

This made for TV movie of the classic Tennessee Williams play was produced following the Broadway revival starring Jessica Lange and Alex Baldwin, that was not critically well-received. Given the Hollywood marquee names of the stars, the idea that a film would be made with them is not too surprising, though we were deprived of Amy Madigan's Stella. (Ironically Lange's performance on stage had been criticized as being 'for the camera').

Given the gay context of Blanche DuBois as a fading old maid at 30, Lange is too old to play her, and her sturdy physicality works against the standard interpretation of Blanche as an Ophelia-ish lightweight. (Lange's waist makes the idea that Blanche has not gained weight in 10 years unintentionally funny). However Lange provides redemptive brilliant touches, that make her Blanche more accessible than that of Vivien Leigh in the 1951 feature, with Leigh's theatrical Gothic Blanche looking as if she would fit into The Munsters. (Don't get me started on Ann-Margret and the way she threw away Williams' lines in her TVM). Lange has fun with the southern accent, and makes you appreciate the beauty and wit of Williams' language. Witness what she does with Blanche's story of the death of her first husband, which director Glenn Jordan rewards her with a close-up for the climax, where she is touching in her hesitance and sorrow. Lange also looks very beautiful in half-shadow when Blanche confesses her indiscretions, though she is lit so well otherwise that the idea that Mitch has never seen Blanche 'properly' reads as silly. The mature Lange mannerisms - her giggling, whispering, preening and fidgeting - draw attention to the performance, and she does not use her low vocal tones enough, but still, this is a performance we should be glad has been captured.

Baldwin does not repeat the mistake of Treat Williams in the A-M TVM. He does not try to imitate Brando, but rather underplays his Stanley, which also does not detract from the character's cruelty. Baldwin shows his attraction to Lange's Blanche, which Brando never really did with Leigh, and his hairy chest still alludes to the hunk appeal that Stanley has for Stella. John Goodman's casting as Mitch was presumably at the suggestion of Lange, since he has appeared with her in many films, and he supplies delicate line readings. I suppose Diane Lane was cast as Stella for her earthiness, but she doesn't really match up as Lange's sister, and doesn't suggest the breeding Stella is supposed to have had.

Jordan doesn't get in Lange's way for the most part, and he succeeds in translating the piece fluidly from theater into film, though one shot of Blanche and Mitch standing apart on a porch makes us imagine how this would look on stage. The only time we are aware of the camera-work is in the last scene, where he repeats a shot of Blanche as she screams, somewhat gratuitously. That last scene is handled simply, with Blanche's fate and Lange's casting inevitably drawing parallels with Frances Farmer.

Although this version of the play allows for what was censored in the original production eg Blanche's husband's being a 'degenerate, thematically the treatment still has some trouble spots. Here Blanche seems to offer little resistance to Stanley's rape, and Stella does not reject Stanley once her sister is taken away. That rape remains as an in-balance in the power struggle - something you would think to be unforgivable by Stella, and certainly undeserving to Blanche. She may have been a relative overstaying her welcome, but is Blanche believable as a force that could destroy Stanley's marriage?

Having played Blanche duBois myself, I'm hypercritical of all other actresses who tackle A Streetcar Named Desire. I've only given compliments to two other actresses: Cate Blanchett (in the modern remake Blue Jasmine) and Jessica Lange in the tv version. Jessica is a very attractive woman and can handle Southern belle in her sleep, but she didn't rest on her laurels for Blanche. She truly studied the script and the character - it showed.

John Goodman reunited with his Everybody's All-American costar and played Mitch. Although Mitch isn't the hardest role to play, Goodman was a good casting choice and delivered a solid performance. A surprising pick was Diane Lane as Stella. Stella is usually portrayed as a frumpy woman, a contrast to her sister's elegance. Audiences are almost supposed to think she sunk to where she belonged when she chose Stanley for a husband. But you can see the good breeding in Diane. When Jessica continually says she thinks her sister could have done better, we agree with her. For although Stanley is played by a good-looking man, we don't understand why she sunk down in the mud. Diane also doesn't play Stella as "mealy-mouthed". She's been beaten down, but once upon a time, she had as much energy as her sister. It's an interesting take on the role, and I appreciated it.

Alec Baldwin played Stanley Kowalski, and although he ticked all the boxes of acting as an uncouth slob, he didn't really delve any deeper into the character. A dirty shirt and a swagger helps with an initial impression, but a good actor knows not to rely on them. It felt like he was "acting", and it didn't feel like Jessica Lange was. She truly was Blanche. She used her femininity: giggling, trying to appear smaller than her frame, moving her hands with grace, and trying to soothe everything with a smile. Smiling is very ladylike, and underneath all her fluff was a simmering fear - fear that she'll be found out, fear that she'll crack, and fear that her coping mechanisms won't work. Jessica used the script, filled in the cracks, and gave a multi-dimensional performance that makes you say, "Vivien who?"

'A Streetcar Named Desire' is for me one of the best works of one of the great playwrights of the 20th century Tennessee Williams, it's wordy (then again that's the case with all Williams, some so more than others though) but is full of passion and emotion. When it's performed well, it really does sizzle. Sizzle it did with the 1951 Elia Kazan classic with Marlon Brando and Vivien Leigh, regardless of it not being entirely faithful to the play the direction, emotional power and incredible performances makes one forget that.

There may be those that question the point of this made for television version, and generally because the film is so good and it would be difficult to equal or better it. Personally don't think that should be the case, it's just another version of the play and plays, of all different types of qualities (even some of lesser Shakespeare has more than one version available), often have more than one adaptation/production. Williams' work is no exception, well his best anyhow, so the likes of 'Cat on a Hot Tin Roof', 'A Streetcar Named Desire' and 'The Glass Menagerie'.

Do prefer the film version on its own terms, but on the most part 'A Streetcar Named Desire' is a worthy version. It is truer to the source material, with what was omitted in the film (now with censorship not getting in the way this time), intact, same with every location, every line, every one of the play's bold themes and the character writing deeper. It is faithful but not too faithful.

Where the film scores over this version though is that to me it had more of the smoldering passion that is a little lacking here and this didn't leave me as moved. The direction, while always thoughtful and never distasteful, isn't as pulling no punches as Kazan's and while the performances are very good, even great, here from personal opinion none reach the same iconic level. While details wise it is more faithful, which is to be lauded as the play is one of Williams' best, to me the film captured the spirit of the play more.

Judging it on its own, there isn't anything done disastrously. There are a few repetitive shots that make us aware of the camera and do agree that the attitudes of Blanche and Stella to Stanley's rape do not ring true, something that should have hurt and anger pouring out but treated with indifference.

For those short-comings though, there are also a good number of virtues. The production values are pleasing on the eyes, the locations having surprising authenticity and the camera work is mostly fluid, the odd bit of repetition aside. Williams' dialogue is intelligent and poignant, wordy but that is a hardly a fault with the production and have never considered it a short-coming with the play either (with lesser Williams plays like 'Orpheus Descending' it is more noticeable and less forgivable). The storytelling may not have the same amount of impact but the faithfulness is not something that works against the production, although the film smolders more there is hardly a shortage of tension and emotion. The climax is quite powerful.

None of the performances are on the same level as the iconic performances of the film, but they are very strong in their own way. Jessica Lange is a remarkably nuanced if perhaps not frail enough Blanche, while not overdoing too much the manipulation, and Diane Lane, at times telling a lot through her face, is heart-wrenching as Stella, one can really feel the character's conflict. John Goodman does an admirable job in trying to break away from the comedic work he was famous for at the time (which must have been very difficult to do), and does so sympathetically if perhaps a touch too soft at times. Which brings me to Alec Baldwin, was worried that he would be a disaster having read some of the reviews, but did appreciate that his interpretation was different from Brando's and not an imitation, he doesn't smolder as much and isn't as brutish but the more human approach that he brought to this difficult role was interesting and he did it well from personal view.

On the whole, worth a watch. 7/10

If you are a major fan of Jessica Lange then I would rent this, otherwise stay away! While Ms. Lange's portrayal is interesting, I'm not sure it is the Blanche, that Tennessee Williams envisioned. At times her slyness distorts the character of Blanche's and gives her the appearance of being nothing more than a manipulative, self-centered woman. Blanche is a woman holding onto her sanity by the skin of her delicate fingernails. Her lies and illusions are her retreat from the cold reality of life and the bad hands of cards she has been dealt. "Streetcar" is a series of encounters between the Kowalski world and the Blanche DuBois world. Each of these encounters will intensify with each subsequent meeting. The conflict is between the oversensitive aristocratic world of Blanche and the brutal, realistic, present-day world represented by Stanley. But as an afternote, it should be added that Stanley is the type of person who likes his "cards on the table." He doesn't go in for subtleties and deception that Blanche has created to survive. As for the rest of the cast, ugh. Diane Lane is adequate at best, she can read lines but she's nothing to telegram home about. John Goodman is all wrong with to start with and he only gets worse as the film goes on. At times I felt like I was watching one of the "dramatic" episodes of Roseanne, which were always self-serving and preachy. I've seen better acting in high schools. This leaves Alec Baldwin who can be summed up with one word - why? His acting is so pedestrian; it's amazing he even works. He is horrible in this production; I now can understand why his performance in this role on Broadway elicited belly laughs. The audience wasn't laughing with him they were laughing at him. He preens and over-emotes, uses an accent (? Strange yet geographically untraceable) then changes it mid-sentnce. One of the most challenging roles in the theater due to its predecessor and the demand of acting with the fullness and variety of a brash jazz band, Baldwin's register is that of a kazoo. He prisses about and poses then delivers lines as though he's reading them for the first time. At times it seemed as though Blanche wasn't physically afraid of him, but more afraid that he was going to go into her trunk and start parading around the apartment in her wardrobe and "tributes from an admirer". If anyone doubts his abilities, this performance will confirm all your suspicions. Save for Ms. Lange's performance this "Streetcar" belongs on Mystery Science Theater 3000. It is almost like a work of science fiction. It is that jaw-droppingly bad. While the 1951 version certainly has superior actors, the Ann-Margaret-Treat William's "Streetcar" is a true ensemble production in which all four principals shine. This production is truer to the theme of the play of the artist (Blanche) ultimately being destroyed by realism and the harsh realities of a world that does not understand her (represented by Stanley).