Reflections in a Golden Eye
Director: John Huston
Year Released: 1967
Rating: 1.0
Tumbling Tennessee Williams what have we here? Clausewitz-obsessed officer (Marlon Brando) is hot for young soldier Robert Forster but feels nothing for his own in-lust wife (Elizabeth Taylor, still on a hot-tin roof), who is having a less-than-secret affair with another officer (Brian Keith) who has his very own neurotic spouse - meanwhile, young soldier Forster likes playing with Taylor's frilly things while she's asleep. Huston's treatment is gaudy and bordering on the ridiculous, forgoing all tact and nuance for soap opera - Taylor's probably the worst offender, and her Southern accent is exceptionally grating. Brando fares slightly better by internalizing the desire and not saying much, though I couldn't help but chuckle when he sees Forster riding naked on a stallion and gets all bleary-eyed (yes, you can literally see Marlon's gears turning). Taking the title literally, Huston intended for the movie to have a 'golden sheen' which was preserved for the DVD release, though to me it makes everything look jaundiced and ugly - along with the yucky appearance, he's also responsible for the aesthetically hideous last shot, which I'd expect from a student film and not one of our most respected directors.
