Review of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) by Mar T — 12 Jul 2008
This is an absolutely flawless film version of Edward Albee's (then) controversial play. George (Richard Burton) is a disillusioned, middle-aged history professor at a small New England college, Martha (Elizabeth Taylor) is his resentful, alcoholic wife.
One night after a faculty gathering, they invite a younger couple (George Segal and Sandy Dennis) over for drinks, and before the evening's end, every raw nerve is ripped savagely open, the blood flowing as freely as the gin & tonics.
A prime example of what happens when filmmakers adapting a play for the screen actually treat it with respect. Rather than trying to concoct a screenplay, the original play was used, and as a result, nearly all of Albee's exquisite dialogue was retained.
Project was further served by Mike Nichols' direction (his debut) and George Wexler's striking b&w cinematography One of the best films EVER, and certainly THE BEST stage-to-film translation, no doubt!
This review of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) was written by Mar T on 12 Jul 2008.
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? has generally received very positive reviews.
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