Review of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) by Andrew G — 23 Apr 2012

Based upon Edward Albee's 1962 play, produced and written for film by Ernest Lehman and the directorial debut of Mike Nichols. This is a powerful play on film, with some brilliant performances and each of the 4 main performers managing to hold their own against one another while on screen, it's power and controversial themes brought down the Hays Production Code, and ushered in New Hollywood.

Set on the campus of a nameless New England college, it has the alcoholic Martha (Elizabeth Taylor) and her husband, history professor George (Richard Burton) coming home at 2am after a party. Martha then announces she's invited a young couple over for a few drinks, Nick (George Segal), who is a sports instructor and his wife Honey (Sandy Dennis).

George is peeved that Martha has done this without consulting him first, but they come and despite trying to put on a good appearance, it's Martha's decent into drink and horrendous rants which George joins in with, and it's the alcohol and the presence of Nick and Honey, which George and Martha use to hurl abuse and pain towards one another about their failing marriage.

It's heavy going stuff, but it's the brilliant dialogue and performances that help this move along, along with Nichols' tight direction, (he missed out on an Oscar for this, but he got one the following year for The Graduate (1967)), it's dark stuff and it shows what damage alcohol can really do to people.

You don't get chamber pieces like this now, but Nichols did something similiar with Closer (2004), oh and Polanski's Carnage (2011).