A Streetcar Named Desire Film Adaptation Personal Response

             In 1951, just four years after the play was written, Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire was adapted for film. The director of the original stage production, Elia Kazan, also directed the film. Even with the same director, the transition from stage to film can be treacherous. The lighting and set design, as well as the dramatic performances, were enhanced to make the production of Scene 2 flow well on the big screen.

Throughout Scenes 1 and 2, Williams uses the stage directions to explain that the Kowalski home is cramped and dirty, as well as that light is a major theme and signals a the divide between truth and lies.  The house does not have any clearly defined rooms. The kitchen becomes the foyer; the foyer the guest room; and only a sheer curtain divides the guest room and master bedrooms. When Stanley confronts Blanche about the Napoleonic Code, the lights begin to flash. This signals that conflict is building as well as Blanches descent into madness. The set, lighting, and other technical elements help William’s intentions for the play to be shown in the film.

            Although Williams’ writes developed characters very well into the play, actors Marlon Brando, Vivien Leigh, and Kim Hunter accentuate the personalities of Stanley, Blanche and Stella. Stanley is brute. In fact, Williams says, “ [the] animal joy in his being is implicit in all his movements and attitudes” (24). To portray this, Brando is muscular and towers over the women. His motions are violent and rigid. On the following page, Williams says that, “[Stanley] sizes up women at a glance” (25), implying that he is driven by lust. When Brando speaks to Hunter, their lips are nearly touching, and his conversations with Leigh are close and flirtatious. Williams paints Stella as a spineless, subservient housewife - a woman who is thrilled by smashing light bulbs, and accepts being beaten. Hunter does a fantastic job of making Stella real by shying away from Brando’s violent movements, and being quick to embrace and kiss him on his return home. It is clear that the character is driven by passion, but deep down is scared of the animalistic side of her husband. Blanche DuBois is a vain woman who seeks the approval of men and claims “clothes are [her] passion!” (38). Vivien Leigh exaggerates Blanche’s insecurities and flirtatiousness well. She dances around Brando, touching him delicately and trifles with him. She asks multiple times about her appearance. Then, the drama reaches a fever pitch as the pair tosses about the contents of Blanche’s trunk, specifically the papers regarding Belle Reve. Altogether, the dramatic performances by Brando, Hunter, and Leigh add to the effectiveness of the film’s plot development and characterization.

            The set and lighting, along with the acting make the film production of A Streetcar Named Desire hold true to the original play. The restricted space and spotty lighting allow for the development of the conflict to be dramatized. Brando, Leigh and Hunter bring their characters to life. All in all, Scene 2 of Kazan’s production is true to what Williams originally wrote.

Works Cited

A Streetcar Named Desire. Dir. Elia Kazan. Perf. Marlon Brando

and Vivien Leigh. Warner Brothers, 1951. DVD.

Williams, Tennessee. A Streetcar Named Desire. New York: New

Directions, 1980. Print.