A Slow Tennessee Waltz

Tennessee Williams is considered by many to be the greatest American playwright of the post-WWII era. His plays are a staple of the stage. Williams wrote "The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond" at the height of his career in the 50s but it has gotten lost in the shuffle. Jodie Markell has directed a new incarnation for the screen.

Fisher Willow (Bryce Dallas Howard) is a very much disliked 1920s Memphis debutante, the daughter of a plantation owner. Part of the reason she is not a popular gal is that her father may have been responsible for a tragedy that killed some local residents. The other part is that she takes great pleasure in shocking and insulting everyone that she meets. Although one might consider Fisher to be someone who is exposing society's shortcomings and shallowness, her delivery makes her more annoying than anything else.

After returning from overseas, she falls in love with Jimmy (Chris Evans), the son of an alcoholic father and an institutionalized mother. Jimmy may be the straightest arrow you will ever encounter. This guy would go after you for throwing a gum wrapper on the street. Fisher likes Jimmy, primarily because he is good looking, but is embarrassed that he isn't one of her normally wealthy suitors. She tries to convince everyone that he is loaded, especially her aunt (Ann-Margret). Since her aunt has total control of the family fortune it's not a terrible strategy.

Markell does a marvelous job of composing shots, often giving us picture-perfect moments, but there is an uncomfortable stiffness that pervades "The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond." Part of this simply reflects the nature of the writing and the era in which the story unfolds. The film is an attempt to capture the hypocrisy of high society, however Jimmy is so stiff that his performance becomes campy at times. No one could be as wooden as he is. He's a toned-down Dudley Do-Right. Whether the writing, acting, or direction is responsible doesn't really matter.

Only one character rises above the rest and that is Addie (Ellen Burstyn), a dying elderly woman who, although only on-screen for a short while, manages to capture the audience. Her performance is what we have come to expect from the immensely talented Ms. Burstyn. This is not to say that there isn't plenty of other talent here but she is the only one that stands out.

"The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond" is beautiful to look at and works from time to time but its overall wooden atmosphere hampers it until it falls ill and dies. If only the film could have passed on with as much intensity as Addie, then we might have had something really interesting to watch.