Michelle de Lacey (MadameAddams)

This is arguably the best Taylor-Burton collaboration from the history of their extensive joint movie careers. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" is a profound and rip-roaringly precise examination of the human psyche. Although Taylor won the Oscar (deservedly), Burton is once again under-appreciated by the industry and some critics alike. In scenes such as George's soliloquy in the garden, Burton manages to portray an intelligent, deeply intellectual man who is oppressed and misunderstood completely, or perhaps understood too well by his overbearing wife. Burton actually uses his facial expressions and physical gestures rather than his trademark booming voice for effect in this film. This works splendidly, particularly when he is framed in between Sandy Dennis and George Segal. The idea was to focus attention on Burton's eyes without using a close up and it does work perfectly. A rather sad and nostalgic effect is achieved through the two younger characters facing him who have their entire lives before them, whilst George has struggled through his own mere existence. The resentment felt by George is so clear in Burton's eyes as they sparkle with tears and become dull with a feeling of complete uselessness for the character. As in other films, Burton does use his voice, only a little less frequently. His ability to change tone, volume and characteristic, vocally, are second to none. This is particularly evident in the scene where George destroys Martha's facade about their son. By using the malevolence of tone, fluctuating volume and harsh realism that Burton familiarised himself with through much of his early cinema, George ultimately deconstructs Martha's lies in the most devastating way he can. Burton conveys the absolute core of George, a broken man who has little use for his life, as though it really were himself. Taylor's performance is also outstanding. Whenever she gives a good performance, (which is more often than she is credited for) people are usually shocked. Perhaps this is because of her colourful personal life and the public need to chisel through it before her performance can actually be criticised. There is not a scene in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" where she is not memorable. From her exclamation of "What a dump!" - alluding to the Bette Davis' film "Beyond the Forest" - to her excruciatingly brilliant deliverance of the final speech about her son, Taylor is truly on top form. In the former scene she carries out the infamous chicken eating sequence and speaks to George in a fashion that resembles some form of perceived 'normality', yet for it's time it is the most unnatural behaviour of a stereotypical 1960's American couple.While Edward Albee is to be thanked for this, Burton & Taylor only compliment his work. The dialogue in the chicken-eating sequence is portrayed as though this tension and hatred of each other is the norm for the couple. Martha: "We've got guests." George: "Got what?" Martha: "Guests. Guests!" George: "Guests?" Martha: "Yeah, guests. People! We've got guests coming over." Martha's soliloquy about their son is one of the best delivered speeches in the film. The trembling voice, the tattered appearance - so unusual in a Taylor film - and the exhausted expression combined, make it a superb deliverance. Burton's satirical interruptions with passages from the Last Rites in Latin are also brilliant and add to the drama. Sandy Dennis and George Segal are excellently cast also, especially Dennis. Segal notably won that year for Best Actor, beating Burton oddly enough. Dennis sparkles with youth and naivete particularly in the last scene. Her innocence is perfect as she attempts to stop George from destroying Martha when he tells her about the death of their son. Dennis also won in 1966 for Best Supporting Actress for the film, deserving nothing less. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" is possibly one of the most trying films to watch at times as it is terribly depressing and heavy, yet vividly relatable and tangible. Many have said that Burton finally found the serious role that he searched for all his life in his final film "1984", but this film is my personal favourite of his. It is another factor which makes the film depressing, that Richard Jenkins was once again robbed of the recognition he so richly deserved from one of the few great roles of his career.