The 1951 film A Streetcar Named Desire, directed by Elia Kazan, and starring Marlon Brando, and Vivien Leigh is a great adaptation of the classic 1947 Tennessee Williams play, A Streetcar Named Desire.

The intention of this film was to entertain the crowd with a suspenseful and somewhat comical environment. This was carried out by the crazy actions of and wisecracking remarks of the Marlon Brando character of Stanley.

     The tone of the play can be interpreted in many ways. One could take into account the violent actions of Stanley toward his wife and her sister. Or one could also see the comedy of his actions. There was a seen that I recall quite well, in which Stanley gets angry while he is at the dinner table during Blanche's ill-fated birthday party and goes on a rampage, breaking everything that was in front of him. He says that he has cleaned his place and ask Stella, his wife, if she would like for him to clean her, making a movement that he was about to break all her things too.

     The casting of this film was excellent. I truly believe that Marlon Brando put out a true award-winning performance, even though he was the only one not to receive an Academy Award that year, losing to Humphrey Bogart. The part of Blanche was also portrayed to its fullest potential. That high-class manner that she had to her was almost nerve grinding. The transference of the original bright-eyed and bushy-tailed Blanche as compared to the partially insane version of her being at the end was a tremendous role that Vivien Leigh plays with the greatest of ease.

     Even though the film only had three real sets, the camera work was wonderful. The lighting was a main focal point in the movie. One could almost say that the light played as a character in the film. It was used to first hide then reveal the age of Blanche, and was used to kind of show the mood of the characters.

     As an overall view of the film I could bring out three main points. One is that the way the movie was filmed; it seems as though one is really stepping into these characters' lives. Also one should pay great attention to the role that the light plays in this film. It can show a happy mood like in the opening of the film, then change into a gloomy feeling, like what is felt at the close of the film. And lastly, one can make one's own judgments of the characters.

     This film is one that I would definitely recommend to any classic film buff, or any person who just likes good movies.