| Summer and Smoke | |
| Director: | Peter Glenville |
| Producer: | Paul Nathan Hal B. Wallis |
| Screenplay: | James Poe Meade Roberts |
| Based On: | Summer and Smoke by Tennessee Williams |
| Starring: | Laurence Harvey Geraldine Page Pamela Tiffin Rita Moreno Una Merkel John McIntire Thomas Gomez Earl Holliman |
| Music: | Elmer Bernstein |
| Cinematography: | Charles Lang |
| Editing: | Warren Low |
| Distributor: | Paramount Pictures |
| Runtime: | 118 minutes |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
Summer and Smoke is a 1961 American drama film directed by Peter Glenville, and starring Laurence Harvey and Geraldine Page, with Rita Moreno, Una Merkel, John McIntire, Thomas Gomez, Pamela Tiffin, Malcolm Atterbury, Lee Patrick, and Earl Holliman. Based on the Tennessee Williams play of the same name, it was adapted by James Poe and Meade Roberts.
The play had debuted in 1948 but not been a success. Nonetheless Hal Wallis bought the film rights in 1952 for $100,000 (equivalent to $ in) following the success of the movie of Streetcar Named Desire.Later that year the play was successfully revived off Broadway starring Geraldine Page.
Hal Wallis originally offered the film lead to Audrey Hepburn but she turned the role down, not wanting to play a dowdy spinster. Walllis' wife Martha Hyer claimed Wallis offered the lead part to Katharine Hepburn who demanded too much money.[1] The role was given to Geraldine Page. Wallis wrote "Gerry was a dream. She had just the detached, virginal quality the part called for."[2] Page also appeared in another Williams adaptation filmed around this time, Sweet Bird of Youth. The cost of this and Summer and Smoke was estimated to be $4 million (equivalent to $ in) in total.[3]
The male lead was Laurence Harvey who was cast on the strength of his work in Room at the Top. Wallis wrote "although he lacked the power and virility of Gerry's husband, Rip Torn, who probably would have been better in the role, he was a bigger name at the time."
The film marked the debut of model Pamela Tiffin. Her role had originally been intended for Dolores Hart. Hart recalled that she coveted the role, writing "Wallis thought I was too young for the role—which I took to mean not sexy enough—but agreed to let me do a test for the director, Peter Glenville... I wanted to prove I could do something for Mr. Wallis besides Presley girls. Mr. Wallis liked the test. But Mr. Glenville thought I was too old—which I took to mean not sexy enough. Pamela Tiffin was very good in the part."[4]
The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival. Variety called it "beautifully acted and distinguished."[5] Page was expected to win Best Actress at the Festival but the award went to Suzanne Flon for Thall Shall Not Kill which resulted in the crowd booing.[6]
While Geraldine Page received nearly universal acclaim for her performance, Laurence Harvey was thought by some contemporary reviewers as having been miscast as John Buchanan Jr.[7]
The film did not make the Variety list of top grossing films for 1961 or 1962.[8] Filmink argued this was in part because " director Peter Grenville produced an utterly sexless version... Sex needs to be at the heart of Summer and Smoke and Peter Grenville doesn’t put any in there."[9]
| Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | Best Actress | Geraldine Page | [10] | |
| Best Supporting Actress | Una Merkel | |||
| Best Art Direction – Color | Art Direction: Hal Pereira and Walter H. Tyler; Set Decoration: Samuel M. Comer and Arthur Krams | |||
| Best Music Score of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture | Elmer Bernstein | |||
| Directors Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures | Peter Glenville | [11] | |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama | Geraldine Page | [12] | |
| Best Original Score – Motion Picture | Elmer Bernstein | |||
| Most Promising Newcomer – Female | Pamela Tiffin | |||
| Laurel Awards | Top Musical Score | Elmer Bernstein | ||
| National Board of Review Awards | Top Ten Films | [13] | ||
| Best Actress | Geraldine Page | |||
| New York Film Critics Circle Awards | Best Actress | [14] | ||
| Venice International Film Festival | Golden Lion | Peter Glenville | ||
| Best Actress | Geraldine Page | |||
The film is recognized by the American Film Institute in these lists: