Sidney Lumet’s movie is based on a screenplay by Moura Budberg, who adapted and translated from Anton Chekhov’s classic 1896 play The Sea Gull.
Grade: C (*1/2* out of *****)
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Theatrical release poster
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The Warner Bros.-Seven Arts release was filmed at the Europa Studios in Sundbyberg, Stockholms län, just outside central Stockholm.
Set in a rural Russian house, the plot focuses on the romantic and artistic conflicts among an eclectic group of characters. Fading leading lady Irina Arkadina has come to visit her brother Sorin, a retired civil servant in ailing health, with her lover, the successful hack writer Trigorin.
Her son, brooding experimental playwright Konstantin Treplev, adores the ingenue Nina, who in turn is mesmerized by Trigorin. Their interactions slowly lead to the moral and spiritual disintegration of each of them and ultimately led to tragedy.
Lumet fails to give his version a unified tonal feel or visual look, and though each of the performers has international pedigree (Oscar awards and nominations), they seem to be acting in a different movie.
Lack of chemistry between James Mason and Simone Signoret (both superb actors), not to mention the lack of erotic tension between Redgrave’s Nina and David Warner, makes things worse.
Hovering between theater and cinema, and not benefiting from the qualities of either medium, The Sea Gull is one of Lumet’s weakest films, showing lack of affinity with the delicate and nuanced source material, especially when tone and mood are concerned.
Cast
Vanessa Redgrave as Nina
Simone Signoret as Irina Arkadina
David Warner as Konstantin Treplev
James Mason as Boris Alexeyevich Trigorin
Harry Andrews as Pjotr Nikolayevich Sorin
Denholm Elliott as Dr. Yevgeny Dorn
Eileen Herlie as Polina
Alfred Lynch as Semyon Medvedenko
Ronald Radd as Shamraev
Kathleen Widdoes as Masha
Credits:
Produced by F. Sherwin Green, Sidney Lumet
Cinematography – Gerry Fisher
Production Design – Tony Walton
Set Decoration – Rune Hjelm, Rolf Larsson
Costume Design – Tony Walton
Edited by Alan Heim
Music by Mikis Theodorakis
Production: Sidney Lumet Productions, Warner Bros.-Seven Arts
Distributed by Warner Bros.-Seven Arts (US)
Release date: December 22, 1968
Running time: 141 minutes
