Journal Entry #16

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

1958, color, 107 min. 

-Director: Richard Brooks

-Actors: Paul Newman, Elizabeth Taylor, and Burl Ives

-Writer: Tennessee Williams 

What are some key scenes that reveal Brick Pollitt's character? 

Brick is a closed off guy, rarely during the entire film does he express any kind of emotion other than anger and disgust for his wife. There a few select scenes in which he does reveal parts of his character and we get a feel for where he is coming from. One is the first scene, when brick is on his old high school track reliving the best time of his life, his peak. He hears the crowd cheering for him, as he is about to run his hurdles. This scene represents his unwillingness to move on from something, his want to be back in the past because he can't stand the present and refuses to acknowledge a future. Then there is the part where Brick runs away from his father and into a wild storm outside. The storm harmonizes perfectly with the climax of Big Daddy’s announcement. The storm signifies literally the storm of emotions that have been released and his being stuck in the mud represents his helplessness.

What cinematic tools does Brooks use in the scene in the cellar augment its crucial meaning?

The cellar is used to convey the tense mood of the film’s entirety. It is darkly lit and Pollitt is sweating bullets, to showcase the overwrought demeanor of the story. It is the confronting moment of the movie, Brick is with his father who he has never been able to connect with, this is a perfect setting, the darkest most deep room in the entire house to discuss the deepest inner feelings bunched up inside for such a long time. It is time for Brick to take charge, to be the man of the house and to understand that his father does love him and does believe in him. His father tells him he needs to love his wife, tells him to be a man and Brick tells him to be more of a father and the both of them resolve the years and years of issues that had accumulated over such a long time.