Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

I watched the movie back in the 90s when a friend and I were having a Paul Newman marathon (as one does). And I remember loving it! At that point, our English class had read and analyzed Williams' “The Glass Menagerie, which I adored, and I'd watched a few other movie adaptations of Williams “Streetcar” and “Baby Doll.”

So, it may have been my insistence that we read a play for the May 2024 Great Books meeting that lead to selecting “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.” This time around, I found the movie and the play far less alluring. In fact, the characters seem overly histrionic, unbelievable, and spew ridiculously long speeches. Some of the short back and forth barbs were quite good, though.

If you have watched the 1958 movie version, you'll notice that some of Act II moves to the end of the movie. Some of the interchanges between Big Daddy and Brick were the most effective and believable conversations as both men faced turning points in their lives.

Lastly, the stage directions seemed overly specific and almost annoying (or at least I'd find them annoying if I was the director).

Sometimes I ought to leave well enough alone as t it s read tarnished my view of the play.