THE FUGITIVE KIND (Criterion/E1, 1959) D: Sidney Lumet, w/ Marlon Brando, Anna Magnani. Rating: NNNNN DVD package: NNNNN Rating: NNNNN
The Fugitive Kind doesn’t achieve the tragedy of A Streetcar Named Desire, but it comes close. Tennessee Williams, adapting his play Orpheus Descending, provides some beautiful speeches in a doom-drenched story about a drifter in a small town, a dissatisfied wife and her mean-spirited husband.
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Marlon Brando, the drifter, Anna Magnani, the wife, Victor Jory, the husband, and Joanne Woodward, a troublemaker, all give white-hot performances, and director Sidney Lumet provides a strong setting with a mix of naturalistic locations and expressionistic lighting.
There’s a revealing half-hour interview with Lumet, but the big bonus is three one-act plays written by Williams and directed by Lumet for NBC’s Kraft Theatre. The picture quality is a little rough, but they’re worth a look.
EXTRAS Lumet interview, Tennessee Williams films doc, three Williams plays. Widescreen, b&w. English audio and subtitles.
