The Night of the Iguana (1964)

Director:

John Huston

Writers:

Tennessee Williams (play)
Anthony Veiller (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

6 August 1964 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Man And Woman - Love And Lust - Ruin And Redemption - One Night They All Meet.

Plot:

A defrocked Episcopal clergyman leads a bus-load of middle-aged Baptist women on a tour of the Mexican coast and comes to terms with the failure haunting his life.

Plot Keywords:

Bus | Hotel | Church | Virginia | Minister

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 2 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Richard Burton	...	Rev. Dr. T. Lawrence Shannon
Ava Gardner	...	Maxine Faulk
Deborah Kerr	...	Hannah Jelkes
Sue Lyon	...	Charlotte Goodall
Skip Ward	...	Hank Prosner (as James Ward)
Grayson Hall	...	Judith Fellowes
Cyril Delevanti	...	Nonno
Mary Boylan	...	Miss Peebles

Runtime:

125 min | Germany:112 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

UK:12 (video rating) (1996) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Canada:R (Nova Scotia) | UK:X (original rating) | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | West Germany:16 (f)

Filming Locations:

Mismaloya Village, Jalisco, Mexico

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

In order to diffuse the tension prior to shooting (due mainly to the isolated location the stars would be working in together), John Huston made each lead actor a gold encrusted pistol with bullets- one with each actor's name on it. This way, when the actors wanted to kill one another, they would use the designated bullet. This proved to be successful. No problems between the cast arose.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Sign in front of church reads "St. Jame's Episcopal Church". Also gives Morning Prayer and Holy Communion as a single service at an early hour (9:00?) with "Sermon" as a separate service at a later hour (11:00?). This movie took place during the 1928 Prayer Book period. Morning Prayer was one service and Holy Communion was another service, and a sermon could have been part of either service, but it would not have been a stand-alone event.

Quotes:

Judith Fellowes: [Yelling at Shannon] You thought you outwitted me, didn't you, having your paramour here cancel my call.
Maxine Faulk: Miss Fellowes, honey, if paramour means what I think it does you're gambling with your front teeth.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Tennessee Williams: Orpheus of the American Stage (1994) (TV)

The BEST film ever... or pretty close!

First, you must understand the nature of Night of the Iguana. The story centers on Shannon (Burton), a life-long preacher caught in a philosophical crisis. His humanity clashes with his theology and leaves havoc in its wake. Removed from his position in a quiet Texas community after an affair with an underage girl, he takes a job in Puerto Vallarta as the tour guide for a rickety bus full of pious old women and one manipulative nymph (Lyon). Shannon is tortured by the girl's advances and finally gives in--only to be found out by her bullish chaperone. To save his job, Shannon hijacks the bus and takes the ladies to a remote motel high on the mountain, run by his ex-flame, Maxine (Gardner). Max is a bawdy, hard-drinking, hard-loving gal, not too keen on the new arrivals. She harbors an unrequited love for Shannon, however, so relents. Within moments of the troop's arrival, two stragglers also enter: Hannah (Kerr) is a penniless watercolor painter who, with her aged grandfather, Nonno--a supposedly renowned oral poet--travels from place to place selling their wares. They wearily hike up the mountain and plead for board, offering to paint or recite poetry to earn their keep.

As the characters struggle with their passions, their pride, and their self-definition, egos break and walls come down, exposing the underbelly of the human situation. They grapple with the questions and desires that plague us all. Who am I? Do my actions define me or do my thoughts? Why am I here? The answers come in ten-fold, and in a poignant moment, Kerr reveals our purpose on Earth: To connect with each other. To help each other through each day. To meet, to see, hear, and feel, and share what we have experienced. This is the meaning of life. Totall riveting. Especially if you travel to Puerto Vallarta and put these questions to the test.