Repressed sexual longings, obsession, voyeurism, sadomasochism, adultery, psychosis, and homophobia are only some of the themes swirling about this dream-like drama that takes place at a southern military camp a few years after the end of World War II. Part Tennessee Williams, part Peeping Tom, part Equus, with a little Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? thrown in for good measure, director John Huston's adaptation of an early Carson McCullers novel takes us on a wild, weird, often disturbing, yet strangely hypnotic ride that's certain to provoke strong reactions in anyone brave enough to hop aboard. Reflections in a Golden Eye takes us right up to the precipice with a Southern gothic story that's a virtual kitchen sink of Freudian afflictions. By the mid-1960s, the horse had left the barn, so to speak, giving directors even more freedom to push the envelope as far as they could. As censorship's grip on the movie industry began to loosen in the late 1950s, films could more frankly explore taboo subjects, and with delicacy and innuendo they titillated audiences hungry to explore adult themes. The psychosexual melodrama is one of Hollywood's most fascinating creations. "Any fulfillment obtained at the expense of normality is wrong, and should not be allowed to bring happiness.It's morally honorable for the square peg to keep scraping about in the round hole rather than to discover and use the unorthodox one that would fit it." Both have been lovingly restored for this release and make this wild, often creepy, and bizarrely captivating motion picture a sumptuous feast for the senses. Warner Archive salutes this titillating production with an enticing two-disc set that includes two different, equally stunning presentations of the film - Huston's preferred gold-tinted version and the wide-release Technicolor version. Director John Huston's adaptation of Carson McCullers' novel focusing on two marriages in crisis at a post-World War II military training camp often goes way over the top, but the substantive issues simmering beneath all the excess makes the film bizarrely fascinating and often hypnotic.
A southern gothic melodrama laced with taboo themes and featuring terrific performances from Elizabeth Taylor, Marlon Brando, Julie Harris, and Brian Keith, Reflections in a Golden Eye pushes boundaries and buttons galore as it explores - among other things - repressed sexual longings, voyeurism, mental illness, and infidelity.
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