Cineinthecity
World-class acting all around
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
05/10/21
Full Review
r r
When Film Mirrors Reality: Cold Truths from “Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf”
When was the last time you watched a movie that made your toes curl? Maybe for you it was during a Gorey horror movie, but for me it was during “Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf”. If you’ve seen this film before, you’d understand. It's because this film was based on a play written by Edward Albee. His sole goal in playwriting was to make the audience uncomfortable. He wanted to produce realistic representations of the way our society acts so that we can understand our problems. This movie is no exception. Directed by Mike Nichols and produced by Earnest Lehman, this film uses an intense plot and extensive symbolism to deliver an uncomfortable look into the realities of marriage, and the emotional violence it can bring.
Releasing in 1966, this challenging film takes place in the early 60’s on a university campus house in the late hours of night. After a party, Martha (Elizabeth Taylor) and George (Richard Burton) invite a younger couple (George Segal, Sandy Dennis) over for drinks. The night spirals as the group indulges in heavy binge drinking, leading to copious arguments and fights. As the film progresses, we watch an innocent night be taken over by battle between 2 monsters striving for emotional damage.
What made this movie so impactful for me was their brilliant use of symbolism. To begin, the constant drinking of alcohol throughout the film symbolizes the inherently broken and decaying nature of George and Marthas relationship. Over the course of the night, after countless drinks, they become increasingly sloppy and drained. Their physical deterioration due to alcohol resembles their relationship’s decay due to constant anger and emotionally violent “games”. Additionally, the use of the son made a great impact. He seems to represent the power struggle in their relationship. Constantly throughout the second half of the film, the son is being used as a weapon to hurt and humiliate. Even though he isn't real, he is the couple's way of asserting dominance and when George decides to “kill” him, I believe that symbolizes the end of their violent “games”. In the end, the use of symbolism in this film was a great device to highlight the intense struggles of marriage.
Overall, this film was great. I must admit, it can be very uncomfortable at times. However, I said earlier that it was Edward Albee's mission to bring forth accurate representations of reality which we can learn from. Although it can be extremely unnerving, that only goes to show how well the roles were performed. It's uncomfortable because it is so real and addresses the unwanted truth that marriage is not easy. Overall, I would give this film an 8/10. If you like movies that tackle real issues, you will definitely appreciate this film. You may find yourself uneasy at times, but in the end, you’ll be amazed by such a realistic performance.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
10/16/24
Full Review
B K
Come on, Martha.
The 1966 film adaptation of Edward Albee’s stage play, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, is a dark, cinematically historic, and twisted brain game. The sadistically updated writing from Ernest Lehman, combined with the unusual and magnificent monochrome production of director Mike Nichols, provides the film with a truly psychotic feeling that only intensifies with each scene. The film itself, considered controversial at the time, utilized uncommon mature themes and brutal tones of dialogue that were unexpected in Hollywood film. The free-flowing profanity, relationship images of dysfunction, and plethora of sexual matter made this film one of a kind.
Viewing the film today, the shocking subject matter has lost its luster. The film, that is carried by mostly dialogue, is rather slow and difficult to follow. The scene location does not change (besides a short scene in the yard) until around the hour and six-minute mark from beyond Martha and George’s home. The non-stop, heavy pouring of alcoholic drinks, the unfollowable squabbling, and awkward moments of confusing conflict drag on throughout most of the film. However, Elizabeth Taylor (Martha) and Richard Burton’s (George) noble performances manage to carry the film until its climatic and revealing end. In the opening scene, a rare use of realism in acting, Elizabeth Taylor’s character Martha scarfs down some fried chicken while attempting to continue her conversation with her husband. The use of this simple, and yet undignified, action allows the audience to relate to the characters in the scene by its lack of glamour and glitz. It was this moment that I realized that the performances in the film were elevating my experience. The constant building of conflicts between Martha and George, felt like voyeurism and all too realistic. Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton’s intriguing performances make the film what it is, classic.
SPOILERS: In addition to the great performances, there are some magnificent visual imageries captured in peak moments of the film. The dance sequence with Honey (Sandy Dennis) where the audience gets to shake a leg with the character through an unusual camera trick and the extreme close-up camera angles of Martha’s face during her emotional breakdown. Nick’s (George Segal) traumatic realization, when he says he now understands, is timed so accurately that, as an audience member, I was thinking the same exact thought. Lastly, the dramatic close-up of Martha and George holding hands for the first time, while the sun rises behind them gives us hope. The scene is a simple manipulation of the camera’s focus and simulates a new positivity, finally, and a glimpse at the uplifting possibilities of a new day.
Overall, the film was extremely slow, outdated, and compared poorly with the nonstop action-packed Hollywood films we are used to today. My original and overall reaction to the film was of disappointment and boredom. The surprising and dramatic shock factor of 1966 had lost its edge, and I had already decided to dismiss the film’s importance. However, during the next twenty-four hours, I could not help but to continue to think about the film. The confusing, yet eyeball popping big reveal at the climax, that was not so clear at that moment. The delusions of Martha that contradict the actual writings of Virginia Woolf’s stream of consciousness. The conclusion that the couple may have found a happier life because of their dramatically disturbing night. And upon further reflection, I believe I am beginning to soak up the greatness of the film.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
10/15/24
Full Review
Evan H
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Mike Nichols is a film about a beautiful, loving and happy relationship. Just kidding! It is quite the opposite; it is a film about two disturbed individuals in a horribly toxic relationship with one another. Originally a play by Edward Albee, the film adaptation is a heat seeking missile of resentment and destructive behavior. Elizabeth Taylor plays the role of Martha, and Richard Burton plays George. The film dives into their disgusting relationship after the couple have just got home from a night out drinking. When most would go to bed the two stay up drinking, to await their guest who Martha invited over to the chagrin of George. The guest, Nick, played by George Segal and his wife Honey, played by Sandy Dennis, arrive after you get a slight understanding of the toxic relationship between Martha and George. But once Nick and Honey arrive the chaos truly begins. The explosive, crazy relationship between Martha and George takes off bringing Nick and Honey for the ride.
Elizabeth Taylor and George Burton gave phenomenal performances in the film "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" Taylor plays Martha as this nasty woman, drunk, loud, obnoxious, demanding, constantly attacking and making fun of her husband George. Burton's performance as George was a witty, sarcastic, frustrated man who seemed dead inside from the years of dealing with his wife. Throughout the movie Burton adapted that frustration into anger and rage, rightfully so. Elizabeth Taylor and George Burton had a real-life relationship that was filled with passion and conflict, and quite possibly mirrored the tumultuous relationship between their characters. In real life the two got married twice and divorced twice. I believe this personal connection between them, and clearly an unhealthy connection, allowed them to draw on their own real emotions, making their performances so powerful. Taylor and Burton's performances in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" were a testament to their acting skills and a testament to their off screen romantic relationship.
I do believe that “Who’s Afraid of Virgina Woolf?” was a great film, however, I could not watch this again for quite some time. It is a hard film to watch and endure. Taylor’s portrayal of Martha is so vile and upsetting. There is nothing lady like about her and she should be put into a mental institute. Constantly yelling, telling personal embarrassing stories about her husband to bring him down. It made me uncomfortable and angry, which shows how great of a job Taylor did acting. Then Burton’s character George for most of the movie is pathetic. Letting his wife emasculate him and yell at him in front of their guests. Even though he has his moments of uproar, he gets humiliated in the most egregious way and his pay back just doesn’t suffice. I struggle with grading this film, because I know it is a great film with some of the best acting, but I just find it so disturbing and not that watchable. I am giving it a 6.8/10.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
10/13/24
Full Review
Tyler C
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf is directed by Mike Nichols is a very theatrical drama whose play heritage shines through. For many people, this may not bode well with them as the theater style of acting can seem more “deliberate” compared to standard acting, but for the movie version of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf,” I felt that the acting fit naturally to showcase the tensions of marriage. Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton’s acting as Martha and George is the shining peak of the movie as there is minimal soundtrack to be had with the movie, but perhaps that plays to its advantage as you focus so much more on the back and forth dialogue between the characters. I also believe that the lack of music can really drive home the “realism” of marriage tension and that there is no superficial glorification of the conflict in the movie. The cinematography is very “set” and slow to help focus the viewer’s attention on the dialogue as well. I believe this slower cinematography style that I’ve noticed could also parallel back to how one would view a play, as typical viewers of a theater play would only have a singular viewpoint.
Some of my concerns with the movie is that it seems it can be hard to fully appreciate this movie without knowledge of the play, as without the play, the movie can seem like just a melodrama between a husband and wife. When it comes to my recommendation, for the average viewer today, I do not believe I can recommend this as it could come across as “too boring.” It definitely takes someone to buy into the theatrical play of a realistic verbal battle of marriage. I had a harder time getting sucked in due to this very subdued setting but that is simply relating to my own preference in movies despite drama being one of my favorite genres. However, I could definitely see myself recommending this for those who may be older or enjoy older films. I enjoyed that the movie also does not take any bias to George or Martha’s side in portraying who may be “more right.” They simply are who they are.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
10/12/24
Full Review
M Q
In every aspect a masterpiece. First time watched in 2024. Feels like new!
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
06/16/24
Full Review
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