TeenzTen An action-packed slog

Srakumsatic A-maz-ing

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Scotty Burke It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

drystyx Tennessee Williams was one of the best playwrights ever. This story is not his usual play, but from the comments I've seen by the rubes on IMDb, it's obvious they have not one clue what Williams was ever writing about.THE GLASS MENAGERIE and A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE, for example, are about multiple dimensional characters, although Hollywood missed the boat on "Streetcar". Most of the time, Tennessee writes about characters with normal passions, maybe a few with devious motives, but usually it's the main characters who are reacting to human monsters from outside of the play.Here, he turns the tables. He gives us three utterly complete monsters in the lead, the ones who are simply out to destroy the lives of others, although the woman, Baby Doll, is a bit less to blame than the other two.Meanwhile, he shows us the reactions of the other characters. There is no doubt that the supporting characters are the only ones it is possible to sympathize with.Malden plays a hopeless red neck. For some reason, he marries a girl who is almost a child, while he is middle aged. This isn't as normal as women want it to be, but it does happen. It's a hopeless situation in most cases. True, if a healthy 45 year old man and a 20 year old woman are both into the same poetry, speak the same lingo, and are both champion chess players, that it a relationship that may work.No such case here, although both are rooted in the deep South. It clearly is a loveless marriage.What makes Malden's character a monster is accepted by today's society way too freely. It only takes one drink from his whiskey bottle to turn modern day hypocrites against him, only because he is a Southern man without a lot of money. While in 1956, his character was partially demonetized, today he is total anathema.As the red neck, Malden is only partially a monster, and his viciousness is dwarfed by the self righteous bigotry of the invader to the town, played by Eli Wallach.Wallach's character is the epitome of self righteousness and Psychosis. This is not a man one can deal with. He is there to control everyone, to destroy everyone who doesn't fit in his genocidal desire for the world, and to haughtily consider himself superior because he is Sicilian.The superior Sicilian complex was even around in 1956. It was around before, in Capone's era in Chicago. It was at a peak in the early 1970s, when American men were not allowed to have blond hair or fair skin, unless they were super rich or from the right family. In the late seventies, men were judged solely on how much "dark blood" they could persuade others to think they had. They would either have to dye their hair, or not wash it for days, to make it look darker, in order to be acceptable, to get promotions, to be allowed in clubs, or at social functions. This is the way it was.To a lesser degree, it was that way in the times of Tennessee Williams.Wallach's self righteous monster, Vacarro, is abusive, and totally out to destroy everyone. This is a character who is not "defending" himself. He is a character who wants to steal what other people have.What he does to Malden's character is accepted by today's society, which is the very proof of what I speak. One cannot possibly laugh with Vacarro, sympathize with him, believe he is just, without being a self righteous bigot. That's the story told by Williams here.The naive bubble boy who views this, will get the impression that Malden's red neck gets what he deserves. Why? Because the naive bubble boy is taught early to be a bigot.Vacarro is doing this to everyone in the area. He came there purposely to destroy them, to take their land away from them. That is his "justice", to control others, to not let anyone who is not a proper Sicilian to live, particularly a male.Williams tells us this flat out. Vacarro doesn't "know" that Malden is guilty of the crime he accuses him of. He has no proof, and indeed he fabricates proof from a witness who wasn't even a witness, Baby Doll, who volunteers to lie, because she is a "naive bubble boy".So we can forgive Baby Doll for being a monster, even when she haughtily enjoys it. She doesn't know how evil Vacarro is. She has also been brainwashed into thinking he is superior.The real story is the other characters. Vacarro is doing this to all the black men there, all the white men there, everyone. His "syndicate" is there to make sure none of these men ever get a chance. He has allies from feeble minded, brainwashed fools like Baby Doll. The poor lady he uses as a pawn, pretending to hire, will be used and abused at his leisure. He says he needs a cook. He probably does. She'll get no special treatment from him, however. He has proved that. He is a monster.Some characters are monsters. Williams clearly shows us that Vacarro is one. He shows us that he gets away with this because too many people are like Baby Doll, bigots against their own neighbors. The bigotry of the red neck is minor compared to the treachery of the bigotry against one's friends.

p-stepien Two years back middle-aged cotton gin owner Archie Lee Meighan (Karl Mulden), obviously none too attractive, entered into marriage with Baby Doll Meighan (Carroll Baker), a girl barely 18 and convinced to accept the proposal at her father's deathbed. Immersed into her name Baby Doll sleeps in a child's crib and states overwhelmingly how unready she is to consummate wedlock, hence entering into an agreement with the elder Archie Lee - she will be ready on her 20 birthday, but only if she is offered the luxuries of the world: life in a mansion and fulfilment of all material needs. However two days before the big game Archie Lee is on the verge of bankruptcy, as his competition, an uncompromising Sicilian immigrant Silva Vacarro (Eli Wallach) has monopolised both cotton production and the gin factory. Obsessed with his deflowering his wife Archie Lee commits arson. Silva is quick to point his finger as Silva and decides to instrumentally use Baby Doll for vengeful purposes...With Tennessee Williams and Elia Kazan (famed for family friendly film versions of controversial novels) "Baby Doll" seemed destined to achieve much at the box office. Although Oscar success was forthcoming the controversial sexual subtexts in the movie caused much furore amongst religious groups and even some drastic reviews in the "Time" or "Variety" demonizing the films confrontational story. Mainly due to the fact that "Baby Doll" was so ahead of its time in terms of context, the plot seems fresh, well defined and relatively up-to-date. Even after so many years Carroll Baker oozes sensuality, a naive vixen not fully aware of her delirious effect on men. Both Mulden and Wallach compliment the picture with equally forceful performances, making "Baby Doll" very much a timeless movie.The biggest issue however seems the overreach by Elia Kazan. The director deals with a contemporarily controversial subject matter with infidelity and promiscuity a theme inclined, rather than presented - Archie Lee does dastardly deeds just to get the nookie, Silva meanwhile uses his charm to bewilder the innocent Baby Doll, who in turn falls into her role of an innocent, but sexual female to entice both men. Therefore in order to lighten the load Kazan uses various moments of the movie to introduce ill-timed humour or counterintuitive slapstick moments, which derail tension between characters and cause a certain lack of reliability on a psychological level. The overall effect is a tired story with limited coherence in dire need of a severe makeover.There are also some dated elements, which albeit purposeful seem out of touch and a tad controversial for non-sexual reasons. This mainly concerns the portrayal of black community, often referred here are 'niggers' and serving a sole purpose as background props. Albeit probably not racist in essence (given Tennessee Williams stance on the matter) and an honest contextualisation of blacks who are treated as denigrated individuals, their diminished role in the movie can cause an uneasy tension. That said they play a key role as watchful observers of the shenanigans in the Meighan household, summarising the events with a meaningful laughter during the final act.Times past the steamy interaction between Baker and Wallach has nowhere near the effect as back in the days - sex now commercialised and mainstream. That said the tension stills lingers, forceful and forbidden, making it one of the main reason to watch the movie.

st-shot Director Elia Kazan heads South with a quartet of New York theatre actors who leave their accents behind in the highly controversial film for its day, Baby Doll. While time may have watered it down somewhat, it still contains moments of powerful sexual tension that in this era of relaxed censorship elude most film directors.Archie Lee Meighan is a few days away from consummating his two year marriage to his thumb sucking teen bride Baby Doll. Baby finds Archie repulsive for good reason but married him anyway for security and so daddy could walk her down the aisle before he died. Archie had impressed the old man by claiming he would put her in the finest house in the county but a series of setbacks to his cotton business has them living in a dilapidated antebellum mansion with coon hounds running about the interior. In an act of revenge he burns down the cotton gin of the rival Silva Vaccaro who in turn seeks to even the score through the seduction of Baby Doll.Tennessee Williams screenplay is more play than film with most of it shot inside an outside the metaphorical mansion after the first half hour. Williams and Kazan's characters are a surly lot ( Mildred Dunnock's Aunt Rose is merely confused) but vile as Archie might be Karl Malden manages to evoke some sympathy for his plight. The scenes between Wallach as Silvio and Carrol Baker's Baby crackle with erotic intensity as Kazan crushes them together in frame after frame. The day long seduction, however, begins to wear after awhile and the interplay between Benoit County locals and the pros betrays the Methods immersion a little along the way making Baby Doll in spite of its incendiary story line minor Williams and Kazan.

bkoganbing Watching Baby Doll I have to ask just what the Almighty Legion Of Decency was so upset about back in 1956? There's no bad language and no sex scenes beyond what was per normal back in the day. I'm guessing that it was Tennessee Williams that brought about the scrutiny. He was breaking down a lot of taboos in those days and another writer with his name on the screenplay would not have received the attention. Of course they also didn't like The Moon Is Blue and this is far better.The source of Baby Doll is an expansion of a one act play Williams wrote for three part show All In One which had a short musical as well as short interpretive ballet. The play within the show was called 27 Bales Of Cotton and it starred Myron McCormick, Maureen Stapleton, and Felice Orlandi. All In One was not one of Tennessee's successes only running 47 performances during the 1955 season on Broadway.Those were the only three characters in the short play so Warner Brothers used some good sense in hiring Williams himself to expand his own work for the screen. Baby Doll has absolutely no trace of stage origins which you can't say for something like A Streetcar Named Desire, probably his best work or Cat On A Hot Tin Roof. The parts from Broadway were played in the film version by Karl Malden, Carroll Baker, and Eli Wallach in his screen debut.Malden is a local big shot in the fictional Tiger Tail County in Mississippi who has a cotton gin, but he's been losing business to brash newcomer Eli Wallach. That's around the time he's taken to himself a young trophy wife played by Carroll Baker, a sexy young vixen who is always referred to as Baby Doll. It was a marriage of convenience where Malden promised not to do the deed until until her 20th birthday which is coming up very shortly. It seems her father who was poor white trash wanted to know his daughter to be decently provided for. Malden's also taken over a rundown old mansion and is trying to fix it up. Carroll and a dotty old aunt played by Mildred Dunnock live there with Malden.Malden's been waiting a few years to get his itch scratched, Baker's not thrilled with the prospect of giving it up to Karl. But Wallach's cotton gin is forcing him to economic straights. That combination forces him to set a fire to Wallach's gin and ruin his competition. The authorities know full well Malden either did it himself or had the arson hired, but Wallach is the outsider and a Sicilian immigrant to boot. They politely look the other way. But Wallach has a plan all his own for revenge.One thing I have to say about Baby Doll, it's the only one of Tennessee Williams southern based works that I've seen where blacks are referred to. Here their position in white supremacist Mississippi is demonstrated fully. The mark of Malden's downfall is how the black employees laugh at him in the climax.Baby Doll was nominated for four Oscars in 1956, Best Adapted Screenplay for Tennessee Williams, Best black and white cinematography, Best Actress for Carroll Baker and Best Supporting Actress for Mildred Dunnock. As this was an adapted screenplay, Dunnock's role was not in the original work, but Williams infused the old lady with a certain amount of common sense if you carefully listen to her. Mildred lost to an actress playing a sexpot like Carroll Baker, the wild child Dorothy Malone for Written On The Wind.As for Baker she lost to Ingrid Bergman for Anastasia, but she got a role that she would forever be identified with. And being identified with a Tennessee Williams character is far from the worst thing to have. Though in her career she tried to downplay that even being cast as a saint in The Miracle.Baby Doll as it turned out was better on screen than in its original form on stage. It holds up very well, it is timeless as all of Tennessee Williams is. It's just not broadcast that often. But make sure to see it when it is.