FP4 entry 20071116

STEEEEEELLLLLLLLLAAAAAAAA!!!!! FP4 pick of the week

PICK: “The Night of the Iguana” (1964) Director: John Huston, Original stage production: Tennessee Williams

Info & Trailer: http://www.blockbuster.com/catalog/movieDetails/24813 (sorry, no trailer that I could locate)
OR
http://www.netflix.com/Movie/The_Night_of_the_Iguana/60011275?strkid=975714856_0_0

ENTRY: This week’s pick delves into a traditional screen play format… and yes, it is a classic and untouched by Ted Turner’s silly tecni-puke-colored crayons. It’s from ’64 which is before high budget movies and elaborate special affects. As you may know the success of a live production at this period was solely based on the content of the plot and script along side of the quality of the performance… I am challenging you to take a step back in time and truly enjoy a story telling/stage experience… so many people today are lazy MTV viewers that are only taken in by lighting fast scene changes, subliminal absorption, over simplified plots and lots of eye candy. Welcome back to the age of jive my friends. Please pay close attention to the scope so you are not wasting your time watching the movie. I chose this movie based on several elements. One, the original script, if untouched, would have outperformed Tennessee Williams hits in “streetcar” and “cat on a hot tin roof.” Many of T.W. plays were taken to the big screen. This one however deserves much more attention that it received in the theatres. T.W. is the master at creating continual conflict and constant social and sometimes sexual tension between characters. Often his focus of the main characters shifts and goes beyond social psychology issues and takes you inside the character’s thoughts and internal struggles. This holds true with this weeks pick more than most of his “plays converted to movies.” (and there were lots of these, some made for TV only)

SYNOPSIS: Richard Burton & Ava Gardner… a good thespian combination for the setting of this flick. Filmed on location in Mexico at Puerto Vallarta, the scenery and the backdrop becomes a big part of the feeling of the movie. The lead, Rev. Shannon is a tired and exasperated priest who is making a meager living as tour guide via bus. His busload of occupants are entertaining in the movie… a group of fundamental conservative teachers on holiday (along with one very passionate and “coming of age” young vixen who plays the part of one of Shannon’s antagonists) The group takes refuge at the earthy and run down resort which is run by Maxine – a close and long time friend of the Rev. Shannon. At first, the group is just happy for a bed to rest in but as time progresses, the teachers protest against the clergy’s plan for a long, multi-day siesta. Other characters enter and the story becomes more like an episode of “survivor” or a day time soap opera instead of being a beachfront resort… they don’t seem to be on holiday as there is constant conflict among the group. The themes of the movie are strung throughout the movie… redemption, religion, spirituality, forgiveness, eternal salvation, shame, denial, love, loneliness… Play close attention to the elderly poet as he recites his prose finale. This poem embodies the message that Tennessee wanted to portray about life. A defrocked priest trying to find sanctuary in his soul is the backdrop to this moving film. The details of the captured “iguana parallel” is not a clearly defined to Rev. Shannon struggles and leaves some room for interpretation. Guess what? This week’s pick MAY have a happy ending… you will have wait and see. If you don’t mind reading, you may want to locate a copy of the play and read it because it is much more robust and detailed in dialog.

Scope: You will be a good target for this movie if you enjoy any of Tennessee William’s plays/films. There are some similarities with this script among his vast collection. But this one symbolizes an authoring shift in TW’s creativity and thematic content which took TW in a writing tangent only now realized in hindsight. Some say this play exposes more about TW’s own internal turmoil than past productions. For those under the age of 30 or unaware of TW, well, I will need to give you a little more to go on for this scope. You enjoy visual art and still-life. You enjoy the healing and nurturing feeling from a day at the beach and in the sunlight. You may also have a friend or family member that has dedicated their life to serving as a clergy or has a life commitment to a “social-working” affiliation or calling. You most likely are intrigued by social psychology and the nature/nurture argument. You may or may not be religious but you are mostly enamored by the thought of mortality. You value the various elements in life that create an emotional sanctuary and recollected tranquility. You realize that humans are not perfect and you embrace the ying/yang of life’s experiences. Forgiveness for you is not always about forgetting but more about an act of compassion. Most of all, in conclusion to this scope, you have freely forgiven someone in your life that didn’t really deserve it (perhaps yourself?).

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