Review of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) by Ben L — 25 Jul 2016

What could be more fun than watching a married couple mistreat each other for 2 hours straight, and drag down another couple with them? This film makes me want to scream. It's the kind of movie they should show to couples planning a divorce, not to talk them out of it, but so they can appreciate how annoying it is when they bicker in front of other people.

I suppose the acting is good, in between the screaming and drunken rambling. I suppose there's artistry in capturing on film something so obnoxious, but I don't have the proper mentality to appreciate it.

It doesn't help that the way they talk to one another is so artificial and scripted. This isn't how real people interact, and it certainly wouldn't be how they'd interact under the extreme influences of alcohol.

Even the most convincing performance in the world doesn't feel genuine when I can see the dialogue written out on a script page, but can't imagine them coming from someone's lips. This is clearly a stage play translated to screen, by some writer who understands emotions but not how real people express them.

I'm not sure if the climax of all this screaming is intended to be a surprise, but I saw it coming hours before they verbalized it. Perhaps if anything of significance happened in this film it would have interested me at least slightly, but imagine my surprise when I realized it was merely 2 hours of bickering.

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is only for the masochistic person who enjoys watching the demise of another couples' relationship. I was delighted when it ended.