The Killing of Sister George
by Robert Aldrich
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Beryl Reid, Coral Browne, Patricia Medina, Ronald Fraser, Susannah YorkDirector: Robert Aldrich
DVD: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Format: Color, DVD-Video, Letterboxed, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: Letterbox, 1.85:1
Running Time: 140 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2000-02-22
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Starz / Anchor Bay
Movie Reviews of The Killing of Sister George
Movie Review: Still Wonderful
Summary: 4 Stars
THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE"
Still Wonderful
Amos Lassen and Cinema Pride
1968 seems so long ago and even stranger than that is the idea that a movie made about lesbians back then still holds its own today. When "The Killing of Sister George" hit the big screen back then, the public was not quite ready for it. Nonetheless, even with a lesbian plot, the reviews were good. Taboos were shattered on the screen when Beryl Reid played June, an actress and lesbian, portrayed a nun on a soap opera. Her world falls apart when it is decided that the nun must be killed off. As she searched for another job, she became abusive to her lover, Alice (Susannah York) and she begins a spiral of self-destruction. The film, at the time, was given an X rating because of its sultriness and frankness but time has made all of that look tame by the standards of today. Once controversial, the movie is still a reflection of the times and it was the first major Hollywood to show a lesbian who was at peace with herself.
Entertaining as the film is, there is a great deal more significance when we consider how brave the moviemaker was to have created a movie like this almost 40 years ago. It is cynical. Objectionable and a great deal of fun, it is landmark film because of both the subject matter and the bravura performance of Beryl Reid. Reid is a virtuoso and she holds the entire movie together. Her identification with the character she plays is simply miraculous to watch.
The film is much like a drawing room drama, small and tidy. The sets are interiors and the movie does not move from location to location. The choice of lesbian subject matter is a reflection of the director's, Robert Aldrich's, like for outsiders. It seems that the decision to make this movie was not based on eliciting sympathy for the lesbian life style but rather to create controversy. "The Killing" is entertaining and the dialogue is wonderful but this is not a sophisticated view of lesbianism--it was not until much later that Hollywood would come to regard us as people.
Even today, the movie maintains its relevance. It is a long film but it is never tiring and never boring. Emotions are held in tact until the gut-wrenching last scene of the film. If you like gritty, clever, slightly humorous drama, this is the movie to see.. Even if it is a bit dated these days, it should not be ignored in the canon of gay film.
The sex scene has been discussed over and over again. Its real value lay in the fact that it shows a power shift between the characters.
When the movie first appeared it was considered to be "ne plus ultra" in coarse homophobia but time has changed all of that. This is an important film because of the performances and the subject matter and anyone who wants to have a good handle on queer cinema must see "Sister George". There is one scene that was shocking then and is still somewhat shocking today and that is what happens in the Gateways Club, a notable lesbian bar.
In 1968 the film opened doors and it is still one of the great lesbian films and should not be missed.
Summary of The Killing of Sister George
"Sister George" of the title is Britain's best-loved soap opera character, played by actress June Buckeridge (Beryl Reid). Buckeridge has become so identified with her character--a sweet old Miss Marple-ish nurse who putters around her quaint little village on a motor scooter--even her friends call her George. But outside the studio she's a hard-drinking, hot-tempered, foul-mouthed lesbian living with an immature young thing she's nicknamed "Childie" (Susannah York, who makes her memorable entrance in a sheer baby-doll nightie). At her worst Sister George is an abusive monster (in a moment of rage she forces Childie to eat the butt of her cigar), but beneath the bluster is an insecure television actress. When the studio decides to kill her character off and an executive makes a play for Childie, the soap star desperately clings to her young lover. Director Robert Aldrich, best known for his tough action films and gothic thrillers, brings his fierce vision of human nature to Frank Marcus's play. In its best moments the film simmers in angry suspicion and helpless frustration, brought to life by Reid's vivacious performance, but other scenes are overlong and stage-bound and would have benefited greatly from judicious trimming and tightening. The caricatured portrayals of lesbian life have aged rather poorly--an inevitable sign of the times--but this acidic show biz drama still carries a hefty emotional punch. --Sean AxmakerArt House & International DVD Video
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