A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Melvin W

  
  Stanley Kowalski: You think I'm gonna interfere with you?... You know, maybe you wouldn't be bad to interfere with.  "When she got there she met the brute Stan, and the side of New Orleans she hardly knew existed." I just watched this for the third time in an… More
  Stanley Kowalski: You think I'm gonna interfere with you?... You know, maybe you wouldn't be bad to interfere with.  "When she got there she met the brute Stan, and the side of New Orleans she hardly knew existed." I just watched this for the third time in an English class, and it reminded me of why I seldom watch movies with my friends. None of them liked this movie. It's too talky for them. There's not much in the ways of action or humor(at least, the over the top humor we are given today), and if there isn't action and humor; I guess it isn't a good movie. Movies like A Streetcar Named Desire are the types of films I like to watch. Marlon Brando, Vivien Leigh, and Elia Kazan; this is filmmaking at its best. Sure this adaption switches some things up in order to not be too much for the 1950's audience and it suffers somewhat because of that, but this is still one hell of an achievement.  Marlon Brando gives one of his best performances of his amazing career as the greasy and caveman like Stanley. The rest of the performances seem over the top in comparison to his perfect performance, but for the time, that wasn't  unusual; especially since this is an adaption of a play and in plays, the acting is normally melodramatic. The underlying themes are well done here. The sexuality is ever present, while still remaining restrained enough for the easily offended audience of that time period.  Despite some changes, especially the ending, the major themes are realized and the picture as a whole doesn't suffer too much from them. A Streetcar Named Desire is another one of those must see films for film buffs. You see the movie everywhere in pop culture especially Brando's famous yelling, "Hey, Stella!" It's an extremely important film, not just for filmmaking in general, but for storytelling. 

• Chris W

  
  As I was watching this, I quickly realized that it was basically just a melodramatic soap opera that made me uncomfortable and pissed because the characters are so horrible and pathetic, albeit a meoldramatic soap opera that was artistically executed and filled with excellent… More
  As I was watching this, I quickly realized that it was basically just a melodramatic soap opera that made me uncomfortable and pissed because the characters are so horrible and pathetic, albeit a meoldramatic soap opera that was artistically executed and filled with excellent performances. I kinda feel bad i enjoyed this. In a lot of ways, this is kind of like, to use that old cliche, a bad car wreck. It's not pleasant, but you can't help but look. The story concerns a fading beauty who is delusional and unwilling to accept reality and come to terms with the fact that, as a member of the Old South, she is no longer socially dominant and she can't stay or look young forever. This lady is named Blanche. She comes to one of the seedier sides of New Orleans to stay with her pregnant sister Stella and volatile brother-in-law Stanley. Stanley a Polish American blue collar worker, is down to Earth, brutally honest, and immediately gets into a class conflict with Blanche, hating her for her pretenses, delusions, and her issues, mostly that of dealing with her past and comeing to terms with reality. Then there's poor Stella, hopelessly caught in the middle. When she does take a side, there's some real potent social commentary due to which side she chooses, and how this might be an even worse choice than the other. Under normal circumstances, the audience might side with Stanley. He is after, seemingly a voice of reason and practicality. However, he is a true beast. He's hateful, abusive, sadistic, and really hard to sympathize with. He's a real force of nature, and it is damn hard to not get caught up in this juicy but ugly world the characters inhabit. If this wasn't so well written and acted, and if it didn't have such wonderful cinematography and art direction, I'd probably hate it. It is cruel, ugly, and depressing. The music is a little bit on the nose, but it works decently enough, I suppose. The audience can't really sympathize too much with the characters, but no one can say that they don't know of people or situations like this. It's a real shame that Brando got snubbed here, because, even though he's a real scum bag, he does any excellent job at being that way. Hunter is good as the 'caught in a crossfire' Stella, and, even though Leigh is guilty of some overacting here and there, I do think she did a really nice job as Blanche. This film might seem rather pointless, because, well, look what I've said about it so far. But it merits watching because life is like the way it is portrayed here sometimes. We all have these elements to our own characters and personalities. It's just that here, each character represents an extreme of those various qualities. Given the film's age, you might, if you wanted to, be able to look at it as not only high brow, artsy soap opera, but as that with some real campy qualities as well. It takes a lot of talent to make this type of story and subject matter redeemable in some way. Thankfully Kazan and Co, pulled it off wonderfully.

• Kristijonas F

  
  This Elia Kazan classic offers probably the most gripping performance from a female lead I've ever seen - Vivien Leigh is phenomenal, and Marlon Brando does not disappoint.

• AJ V

  
  I cannot write everything I'd like to write about this movie without taking up like a whole page or something, so I'll boil it down to a few major points: first of all, if you're not a Brando fan this movie will turn you into one. His performance and his style are hard… More
  I cannot write everything I'd like to write about this movie without taking up like a whole page or something, so I'll boil it down to a few major points: first of all, if you're not a Brando fan this movie will turn you into one. His performance and his style are hard not to admire, he's one of the greatest actors. The story is based on Williams' play, of course, which is a very powerful, intense, dramatic play. Transferred to the screen with Kazan's style, it's brilliant. The only problem with the film is that it changes the ending from the play, but other than that it's fantastic. I highly recommend this movie.

• Alice S

  
  Another classic that I'm meh about, and I think it's mainly because of Vivien Leigh's portrayal. The only moment that reveals her true insanity is a scene towards the end during which she actually uses her lower register. Instead of marking Blanche's pivotal… More
  Another classic that I'm meh about, and I think it's mainly because of Vivien Leigh's portrayal. The only moment that reveals her true insanity is a scene towards the end during which she actually uses her lower register. Instead of marking Blanche's pivotal change throughout, Leigh suddenly switches from her initial frothy voice, and it rings of an actor being inconsistent.

• First L

  
  There actually is a streetcar named "Desire" in A Streetcar Named Desire. Blanche DuBois takes it to her sister's home on Elysian Fields Avenue in New Orleans. It's like something out of an Edgar Allen Poe story, Blanche tells her sister Stella of her and her… More
  There actually is a streetcar named "Desire" in A Streetcar Named Desire. Blanche DuBois takes it to her sister's home on Elysian Fields Avenue in New Orleans. It's like something out of an Edgar Allen Poe story, Blanche tells her sister Stella of her and her husband's home. Blanche first sees Stella's husband Stanley as he's starting a fight in a bowling alley. Blanche tells her sister she's on a temporary leave of absence from her teaching position as she's had something of a nervous breakdown. Blanche has come to stay for an indeterminate amount of time to rest, but after seeing Stanley for the first time, she must realize she'll get very little peace. Stanley at first is merely put off by Blanche's sophisticated ways, seeing her as just another phony woman, but upon finding out she's lost the family estate, he begins to suspect her of devious deceit or worse, cheating him out of his share of some money. Stanley is a brutal, angry man who only deals with things by force, whereas Blanche and Stella are the exact opposite, yielding to bellowing like branches in the wind (and obviously, this forcefulness of Stanley's, this opposition to her customary life, is exactly what attracted Stella to him in the first place). But it can't be just the clash of social backgrounds that so drives Stanley to persecute Blanche (as he married a woman of the exact same background), there seems more to it. He clearly doesn't like the fact that she feels herself superior to him due to her higher education, but maybe more than that, he hates weakness in people. Most of all, Stanley has zero empathy for anyone; he'll never know what Blanche suffered, nor will he ever care. His all consuming passion seems to be himself, whereas Blanche just seems to be trying to survive as best she can. Playwright Tennessee Williams ("Cat on a Hot Tin Roof") has a knack for capturing the ugliness of humanity and this film is no exception. Honestly, there aren't too many redeeming characters in this film and the overall vision presented is that humans aren't much better than animals. Director Elia Kazan would work with Marlon Brando and Karl Malden again a few years later with "On The Waterfront", a film about one man standing up against corruption for what he felt was right. In A Streetcar Named Desire, Brando's character again stands up against corruption, but the motives seem far less noble. Good, bad or indifferent, Brando's early roles all seem to have a similar note to them. Like Sylvester Stallone in Rocky, Brando's Stanley might be his greatest role. It's also quite something to watch Vivien Leigh's performance, as Blanche is slowly stripped of everything, including even the chance to dream, we watch her fragile shell crack and then shatter.

• Conner R

  
  A perfectly acted adaption of Tennessee William's play. Marlon Brando and Vivien Leigh gave incredible performances that embodied their characters in the fullest extent. The visual scope of the film is a tad unoriginal, but has very little effect on the film's message.

• Jennifer D

  
  STEEEEEEEEELLLLLAAAAA..... haha!

• Tim S

  
  A masterpiece of over the top Southern drama. The thing that's great in this movie is that all the drama and whole brilliance of the movie lies in the screenplay (and the play itself) and how the actors play each moment to full tilt makes it a classic. This is another example of… More
  A masterpiece of over the top Southern drama. The thing that's great in this movie is that all the drama and whole brilliance of the movie lies in the screenplay (and the play itself) and how the actors play each moment to full tilt makes it a classic. This is another example of why Brando is the standard to what modern actors aspire to. It's everything that is great about acting which is the actual being of the character. The other performance that I really enjoyed was Karl Malden who was great. I tell everyone that not a lot of people get the New Orleans accent and this is one of the few movies that does in just about every small talk and character that they have in the movie. I credit that to Elia Kazan who is a master. Can't say enough about how much I enjoyed this movie.

• Saskia D

  
  What's the deal with this Vivien Leigh? She plays Blanche Dubois, this dramatic, anxious, mentally unstable woman. And she is either a very good actress or a very bad one, I couldn't decide. I just couldn't help but wanting to slap her in the face! Somehow her dramatic… More
  What's the deal with this Vivien Leigh? She plays Blanche Dubois, this dramatic, anxious, mentally unstable woman. And she is either a very good actress or a very bad one, I couldn't decide. I just couldn't help but wanting to slap her in the face! Somehow her dramatic style of acting, and the natural intensity of Brando amplify the irritation I felt towards her. I guess that's a good thing right? (So if you have decided on this, let me know, if there are any suggestions on which movies I should watch to find out, by all means, let me know!) Anyways, I loved that claustrophobic atmosphere and the bad, bestial sex that Stanley Kowalsky (Brando) oozed.

• Ken S

  
  This movie drips with sex

• Shauna R

  
  A Streetcar Named Desire is a dramatic, fascinating and truly memorable cinematic experience. I could not take my eyes off the screen through out, I was completely engrossed by the sharp and edgy atmosphere and tense confrontations between the characters. <br/>Elia Kazan did… More
  A Streetcar Named Desire is a dramatic, fascinating and truly memorable cinematic experience. I could not take my eyes off the screen through out, I was completely engrossed by the sharp and edgy atmosphere and tense confrontations between the characters. <br/>Elia Kazan did an excellent job of bringing to life Tennessee Williams's celebrated play. <br/>Never before have I witnessed acting so good from all of the leads. Vivien Leigh shines as the disturbed and confused Blanche, drifting between fantasy and reality. Marlon Brando, wow. He gives an immaculate performance of the rude and brutal Stanley, definitely up with the best of his career, maybe even THE best. Karl Malden and Kim Hunter both give incredible supporting performances. <br/>A Streetcar Named Desire is an emotive, intelligent, thought-provoking piece of film-making. A true example of a classic.

• Elvira B

  
  Much praised film indeed, which is why I approached it with usual skepticism. It, of course, did not disappoint. With such a fine source material as is Tennessee Williams, whose plays I always enjoy reading, and with Vivien Leigh and Marlon Brando, it was difficult to fail. The… More
  Much praised film indeed, which is why I approached it with usual skepticism. It, of course, did not disappoint. With such a fine source material as is Tennessee Williams, whose plays I always enjoy reading, and with Vivien Leigh and Marlon Brando, it was difficult to fail. The highlight is the performance, both Brando's and Leigh's, but there's something to be said for the direction too: inobtrusive, straight to the point, not experimental, not symbolist, just a plain good delivery of the story and a close faithfulness to the originality of the script. Marlon Brando is stunning. He becomes the quintessential macho, although one with internal weaknesses and insecurities. There are few scenes in the history of cinema as unforgettable as Brando standing on the street, crying and yelling for his wife, Stella. He is, to put it simply, powerful, and dominates the screen at all times, towering over Leigh both physically and metaphorically. This is a milestone in the history of acting, and now that I've seen it I realize how many later performances drew their essence from this one. Vivien Leigh is also fantastic as Brando's unstable sister-in-law. Worn down by financial and emotional crisis, probably broke, capricious, and hypocritical, she is a disturbing, mortifying figure lurking throughout the film, intermittently taking the spotlight, thrashing the place, and receding. She makes us feel sorry for her and hate her, and vice versa, for 2 hours straight. With that said, it's difficult to state anything previously unknown about this classic. Except perhaps "Watch it!", because it's a pleasure to witness such a display of virtuosism.

• danny d

  
  simply one of the most overrated films in the history of the world. the only bright spot was another solid performance by brando, and even he had moments of incoherence and sillyness. the downsides to this film are numerous. tennessee williams script was the biggest culprit, as it… More
  simply one of the most overrated films in the history of the world. the only bright spot was another solid performance by brando, and even he had moments of incoherence and sillyness. the downsides to this film are numerous. tennessee williams script was the biggest culprit, as it was pretentious, sterile, bland, and down right silly. the art direction was lifeless, the cinematography too simple for such a dry script, and the rest of the acting aside from brando was over dramatic and painful to watch. the ending was the worst part, leaving us with nothing of consequence to reflect on. a huge waste of time despite the great critical acclaim this film recieves.

• Pierluigi P

  
  Excellence is what is achieved with this film, in every single department. Kazan's direction is deep, the writing is flawless. Brando is outstanding as that despicable wild animal, and Vivien Leigh can't hide her beauty, she is just fragile, tender, deeply disturbed and… More
  Excellence is what is achieved with this film, in every single department. Kazan's direction is deep, the writing is flawless. Brando is outstanding as that despicable wild animal, and Vivien Leigh can't hide her beauty, she is just fragile, tender, deeply disturbed and magnificent.

• Veronique K

  
  "streetcar named desire" is a mighty classic from tennesse williams' play. of course, the earth-shaking marlon brando is hardly to be neglected with his raw beastly sensuality, and ballsy vivien leigh is willing to de-glamourize her southern belle image in "gone… More
  "streetcar named desire" is a mighty classic from tennesse williams' play. of course, the earth-shaking marlon brando is hardly to be neglected with his raw beastly sensuality, and ballsy vivien leigh is willing to de-glamourize her southern belle image in "gone with the wind" to appear as a wailingly aging nymphmaniac female who deserves the most pathos. much has been said about brando and leigh's performances, no need to elucidate further since it's so conspiciously brilliant that audience would notice himself. despite the brando's charisma and sex appeal, the cultural ideology under williams' symbolic dialogues should be studied further. it's a story about the marred dim glory of old south prestige where blanchet (leigh) and stella get nutured, and how they descend under a mercilessly spiteful palm of one prole savage, stanley(brando)...blanchet commits numerous adulteries then retreats back her sister's home in industrial area, forced to confine under the same roof with her violent bro-in-law stanley who runs amok in poker games and shouts to his wife all the time. blanchet tries to restore stella back in the right track of their gentle breed that arouses the intense animosity of stanley who schemes to unravel blanchet's sordid past to jeopardize her new-sought potential marriage with mitch. so he could susccessfully eliminate blanchet, then further he even violates her sexually. stanley's character is the side of new american, mostly primitive immigrants, who contempt tender civilization of old genteel. this new breed of americans is brutally philistine due to their suviver prole nature as stanley's mention of nappolian code and eager estimation on blanchet's lost land, and they're also crude misogynists who hate to be ordered around by women. they demand the absolute depotism over their women, and women should shut their mouth at dinner table as stanley smashes the dishes to do his table-cleaning. and this new prole-born americans are repulsed against the polite gentlemanship advocated in hollywood movies. stanley hates to give women compliments and his desperate need for his wife stella is like a caveman yelling out for mating in agony, as he growls "STELLA!!!!!!!" blanchet is narcissistically self-deceiful but pitifully excusable. despite her self-obsession, she's imaginatively lyrical, craving for the beauty of waltz even under a roof filled with rednecks, prefering to wrap light-bulb with chinese lantern, as she remarks "i cannot stand brutal conversations as i cannot stand the naked light-bulb" even she grows into a caricature for her bizarre insistance on her old south courteous mannerism. as willaims' preference to have his female lead as vigorous, sexually depraven female in desperate crave for their homosexual spouse uncapable to satiate the marital duties. blanchet's first love, 16 year-old lad who commits suicide due to his failture of consummation, is another williams' typical tragic catalysis. to escape death, she seeks the obverse desire, her so-called "kindness from strangers", that leads to her embarassment of pedophilic scandal and her self-exploitative intercourses. libido and love is compartmentalized, thus blanchet's doomed with neurotic sensitivity, a more delicate complexity stanley lacks and ignores, shattered by stanley's unrelenting violence into pieces. brando could transfer such objectionable character to a sexy beast even he conducts himself clumsily, that could parallel the 50s beat spirit to revive the partriachy he reveres. blanchet's catastrophe into asylum is the metaphoric ruin of old doctrines.

• Jennifer X

  
  Oh, Marlon Brando, you've never been more beautiful, but seriously, way to kick people while they're down, asshole. A very theatrical production, one very very unlike a standard movie, and I'm unsure of how I liked it. Definitely has aged with time, but not in a wholly… More
  Oh, Marlon Brando, you've never been more beautiful, but seriously, way to kick people while they're down, asshole. A very theatrical production, one very very unlike a standard movie, and I'm unsure of how I liked it. Definitely has aged with time, but not in a wholly bad way. I, for one, wasn't impressed with Vivien Leigh's histrionics because they were so, so, ridiculously unreal, but the story was good, Marlon Brando was awesome, so, hm...must ponder this more.

• Jeremy S

  
  "Steeeeellllllllllaaaaa! Hey, Stella!" and "I have always depended on the kindness of strangers."

• moon r

  
  the movie that modern actors stand on...in this corner: brando puts his foot dead into "established acting traditions'" arse and wiggles his toes. and in the opposing corner, "established acting traditions'" lone hero, a very frightened vivien leigh, who… More
  the movie that modern actors stand on...in this corner: brando puts his foot dead into "established acting traditions'" arse and wiggles his toes. and in the opposing corner, "established acting traditions'" lone hero, a very frightened vivien leigh, who puts up a very good fight but futile...futile (and the fight only might've cost her her sanity, no less!). brando is vesuvius in this, and practically every actor since looks as if they are only copying this ugly mug, who made ugly beautiful. w/o this performance, there is no pacino, no deniro, no walken, or half a hundred or so actors, or even the latest contender christian bale (omigod! isn't he english?!? yep, and a shakespearian-trained creation, go figure, but everybody recognises plutonium once they see it)

• Rachel F

  
  Honestly, I know this movie is supposed to be one of the greatest of all time, but I really didn't like it. Marlon Brando was great and not to mention freaking gorgeous but Vivien Leigh's character just pissed me off.

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