Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

"Just one pillow on her bed... and just one desire in her heart."

1958 1h 48m EN

🙌

7.6

BANGER

★7.6TMDB · 870

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

An alcoholic ex-football player drinks his days away, having failed to come to terms with his sexuality and his real feelings for his football buddy who died after an ambiguous accident. His wife is crucified by her desperation to make him desire her: but he resists the affections of his wife. His reunion with his father—who is dying of cancer—jogs a host of memories and revelations for both father and son.

“Just one pillow on her bed... and just one desire in her heart.”

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Cast

Elizabeth Taylor
Maggie Pollitt
Paul Newman
Brick Pollitt
Burl Ives
Harvey 'Big Daddy' Pollitt
Judith Anderson
Ida 'Big Mama' Pollitt
Jack Carson
Gooper Pollitt
Madeleine Sherwood
Mae Pollitt
Vaughn Taylor
Deacon Davis
Larry Gates
Dr. Baugh

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Richard Brooks
Writers: James Poe, Richard Brooks
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $3.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 5.9× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

68 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Richard Brooks, shot by William H. Daniels. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Charles Wolcott. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Ferris Webster shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman and Burl Ives carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Just one pillow on her bed... and just one desire in her heart.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Richard Brooks directs. William H. Daniels behind the camera. Charles Wolcott scores. Ferris Webster cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $3.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Made its money back 5.9× over at the box office.
368 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
4Directed by Richard Brooks, shot by William H. Daniels. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Charles Wolcott. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Ferris Webster shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman and Burl Ives carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "Just one pillow on her bed... and just one desire in her heart.".
9IMDB entry: tt0051459 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 28 themes, including "dying and death", "depression", "individual", "suicide".

The technical file

Cinematography: William H. Daniels
Original score: Charles Wolcott
Editing: Ferris Webster
Costume design: Helen Rose
Makeup / hair: William Tuttle
Sound: Van Allen James
Runtime: 108 min · 1h 48m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $3,000,000
Box office: $17,570,324
Return: 586% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)

Awards

National Board of Review: Top Ten Films

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Richard Brooks

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2024-09-29
★ 7/10
Yikes, but there's a lot of smouldering going on here... "Brick" (Paul Newman) is the former all-American boy type who has got himself injured and is married to "Maggie" (Elizabeth Taylor) with whom he has a pretty turbulent relationship based on mistrust. He is the son of the wealthy and tyrannical "Big Daddy" (Burl Ives) who is in turn married to the rather sheepish "Ida" (Judith Anderson) and the brother to the ostensibly insipid lawyer "Gooper" (Jack Carson) who is married to the rather selfish "Mae" (Madeleine Sherwood). So far, nobody much likes or trusts anyone, there's not enough love around this big mansion house to fill a teaspoon and with the old man starting to show signs of ailing, the vultures are beginning to gather to divide his huge house, 28,000 acres and $10 millions in the bank. What now ensues sees a strong performance from Newman, usually never far from a glass or a bottle, and some pretty intense scenes between himself and a very much on-form Taylor who manages to reconcile her character's formidable abilities at attack being the best form of self-defence with some wonderfully pithy and aggressive put-downs (all from the acerbic pen of Tennessee Williams). For me, though, it's the last twenty minutes and Ives who makes this toxic tale of the epitome of the dysfunctional family succeed, coupled with some claustrophobia-generating storm effects outside their home, and creating an environment so thick you could cut it with a knife. There is chemistry all over the place, here, and by mid-way through you are uncertain as to who is pulling whose strings as the avarice starts to rival the jealousy and the frustration for top billing amongst this bunch of frankly rather odious and shallow individuals. Did lack of love make them this way or was it always a fait accompli when surrounded by fabulous wealth and a bully for a father? It's a tensely directed look at what makes some of us tick and at just how easily drink, gossip, rumour-mongering and downright lies can derail even the most visceral of relationships. An ensemble cast deliver a powerful story compellingly, her and it's well worth a watch.

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