The Fugitive Kind (1959)

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Tennessee Williams (play)
Tennessee Williams (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

1 December 1959 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

...and now the screen is struck by lightning !

Plot:

Val Xavier, a drifter of obscure origins arrives at a small town and gets a job in a store run by Lady Torrence...

Plot Keywords:

Small Town | Drifter | Cemetery | Jacket | General Store

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Marlon Brando	...	Valentine 'Snakeskin' Xavier
Anna Magnani	...	Lady Torrance
Joanne Woodward	...	Carol Cutrere
Maureen Stapleton	...	Vee Talbot
Victor Jory	...	Jabe M. Torrance
R.G. Armstrong	...	Sheriff Jordan Talbott
Emory Richardson	...	Uncle Pleasant, the Conjure Man
Madame Spivy	...	Ruby Lightfoot (as Spivy)
Sally Gracie	...	Dolly Hamma
Lucille Benson	...	Beulah Binnings
John Baragrey	...	David Cutrere
Ben Yaffee	...	'Dog' Hamma
Joe Brown Jr.	...	'Pee Wee' Binnings
Virgilia Chew	...	Nurse Porter
Frank Borgman	...	Gas Station Attendant
Janice Mars	...	Attendant's Wife
Debbie Lynch	...	Lonely Girl
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jeanne Barr	...	Bit Part (uncredited)
Neil Harrison	...	(uncredited)
Herb Vigran	...	Caliope Player (voice) (uncredited)

Directed by
Sidney Lumet

Writing credits
Tennessee Williams		(play "Orpheus Descending")
Tennessee Williams		(screenplay) and
Meade Roberts		(screenplay)

Produced by
Martin Jurow	....	producer
George Justin	....	associate producer
Richard Shepherd	....	producer

Original Music by
Kenyon Hopkins

Cinematography by
Boris Kaufman

Film Editing by
Carl Lerner

Art Direction by
Richard Sylbert

Set Decoration by
Gene Callahan

Costume Design by
Frank L. Thompson

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Charles H. Maguire	....	assistant director

Sound Department
James A. Gleason	....	sound (as James Gleason)
Philip Gleason	....	sound

Stunts
Larry Duran	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Saul Midwall	....	camera operator

Music Department
Kenyon Hopkins	....	conductor

Other crew
Mart Crowley	....	production assistant

Production Companies

• Pennebaker Productions

Distributors

• United Artists (1959) (USA) (theatrical)
• MGM Home Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

119 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:PG (Ontario) | Brazil:14 | Australia:M (original rating) | Australia:PG (alternate rating) | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved

Filming Locations:

Milton, New York, USA

Company:

Pennebaker Productions

Trivia:

"Battle of Angels", the original version of Tennesse Williams play "Orpheus Descending" that the movie is based on, flopped in Boston in 1940 and did not make it to Broadway. The 1957 Broadway production of the reworked play, starring Cliff Robertson and Maureen Stapleton as Val and Lady Torrance, also was a flop. It wasn't until the 1989 revival starring Vanessa Redgrave as Lady Torrance that the play was a success on Broadway.

Quotes:

Lady Torrance: Are you a lady's man?
Valentine 'Snakeskin' Xavier: It's been said that a woman can burn a man down... I can burn a woman down.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Masked and Anonymous (2003)

Top Notch Acting

This is not a well-written film, but the acting is phenomenal. Brando and Magnani have really great chemistry and that's what carries the film. It is the acting of these two that make me want to watch this film time and time again. I didn't necessarily like Joanne Woodward in her role, it just didn't seem to fit her. It seemed like she was trying too hard or something, so I just tuned her out. But I was always tuned into Brando--its just something about him that just pulls you in--wondering what he'll do next in the scene. Anyway, The cinematography is great and adds to the moodiness of the film. Overall, the movie isn't necessarily Brando's greatest film, but it's by no means one of his worst. Unfortunately, there wasn't much to work with as far as the script, so the acting had to carry the film.