roddekker While trying to keep this film's 1969 time-frame firmly in mind - I certainly have to say that I found having actress Beryl Reid in my face for 2 hours & 20 minutes (with her abrasive, scenery-chewing "June Buckridge" character) to be (almost) too unbearable to endure at times.A hateful, nasty, jealous and temperamental boozer - Was June Buckridge really supposed to be looked upon as being a fair representation of an older, butch lesbian (who was having a very stormy affair with a very girlish and feminine woman who was young enough to be her daughter)? If you ask me - This badly-dated, British production (filmed in Metrocolor) was so antagonistic in nature that it only succeeded in reinforcing the most negative lesbian stereotypes imaginable.And, finally - I think that director Robert Aldrich handled this film's subject matter very poorly. As an example of just that - The nightclub scene of same-sex couples slow-dancing together certainly went way beyond the point of being just clumsy and awkward. It sure did. In fact, it was downright atrocious!

itsmrbigtoyou So, this very strange and almost rather unusual film was on Irish TV the other night. I had read the brief description of it listed in the TV Guide earlier in the week and then on the day's paper. I had nothing else scheduled to record, so I though: "Why not? It might not even be on DVD" and I ran up to my room, got a blank DVD and popped it in, set-up the channel, appropriate recording time, etc. and got cracking.Now, I knew there was a fairly British cast in this, having only heard of Beryl Reid (Beryl being a very English-sounding name) and then seeing next to it, Susannah York, who I had of course heard of before, I just for some reason got the impression that this might have been a more entertaining, middle-to-late 1960's American TV Movie Of The Week-type thing.As it began, I quickly discovered that, it wasn't. Not in the slightest was it.The picture was wobbly, it was INCREDIBLY dated and with Beryl Reid's line in the beginning of: "Jolly kind of you, thank you", or something along that matter, during the opening English afternoon bar scene, it was indeed a VERY typical English production. With a not-so-great, yet, not-so-bad Opening Credits and theme music introduction, consisting of Main Titles that were a little somewhat reminiscent of the American TV Drama Series of (primarily) the 1980's, "Knots Landing", "The Killing Of Sister George" began.In what can only be described as a series of constant scene changes showing Reid's character make her way from a bar to her apartment, with the appropriate credit and titles sequences quickly flashing-and-disappearing on-screen as the picture changed for each moment of Reid's character making her way home, it showed a lot of what is typical of Ireland and Britain: bad weather, alley-ways, not-so-good-to-drive-on roads and a lot of dog walkers.Then, oh wait, is that? YES, IT IS! Coral Browner's name appears on the screen as being a co-star in this film. In case you aren't an E.L.O. fan, Coral Browne was the voice of a character in the 1980 Universal Pictures/Electric Light Orchestra co-production of "Xanadu". It was commercial flop, but never mind that, on with "The Killing Of Sister George", I say! Intending to only stick with it for a few minutes and then head to bed, I ended up staying with it and I kind of regret that now. It didn't really enthrall or entertain me, to be perfectly and completely honest. I expected it to be a MUCH better film. Now, having said that, it's not all bad. The climatic, nighttime lesbian sex scene which involves York and Browne's character, was indeed shocking for it's time and still is a little for today, but I have seen much more intense stuff in 15A-rated films showing at The Cinema, etc.It wasn't necessarily a good sex scene either. Both of the women's characters were fairly butch and it looked very uncomfortable and also very much a turn-off. It makes you look at women differently and makes you wish that the film wasn't nearing it's end so as something else could be done with the characters and make it seem better.I thought "The Killing Of Sister George" wasn't going to be GREAT! Sadly, it wasn't and didn't live up to my honest expectations of what it should have been like AT ALL. Maybe, if it was an American production, it would have been handled better and have made for a better film. I would have done some recasting and have picked someone like Susan Clark for the leading role and have changed the characters to Americna ones and have set it in mid-1970's America.That's just my opinion and I'm thinking of adding "The Killing Of Sister George" to my list of not-so-great late-night-shown films on Irish TV. in it, at the moment are: "Pope Joan" (terribly depressing) and "Disaster Zone: Volcan In New York" (oddly enough, shown the following night after this film).

tony-peterson The Killing of Sister George (1968) THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE tells the story of June Buckridge, a middle-aged actress who portrays "Sister George" in a cosy weekly British TV soap opera called "Applehurst".In the show June, as "Sister George", is a sweet and charming District Nurse loved by all, but off-screen she has a more sinister side to her personality: she's a hard-drinking, foul-mouthed, cigar smoking lesbian, totally insecure in her relationship with the much younger Alice "Childie" McNaught (Susannah York).Into this insecure relationship arrives the spidery Mrs. Mercy Croft (Coral Browne), who indirectly gets June sacked from her television role and seduces June's lover into the bargain.Beryl Reid is sensational as June Buckridge. Using a wide variety of acting skills she makes the character completely her own. It's a memorable performance, but perhaps a bit too theatrical at times.Coral Browne fairs a bit better and simply oozes fake charm and arch superiority. She's positively malevolent. Her every line of dialogue and facial expression seem to drip with evil intent. What a great performance.Susannah York is a bit hard to take as "Childie". She's simply the wrong actress for the role because she appears to be too old and her personality is too "strong" for someone who is supposed to have been dominated by her lover.The film, directed by Robert Aldrich, will be a bit too full-on for most audiences. In the play on which the film was based, the lesbian relationship was only hinted at, never really mentioned. But in the film, however, Aldrich hits you over the head with it again and again.Be warned: the trip to The Gateways Club (a lesbian bar) maybe a bit too shocking even in this day and age for some viewers.A good film, but it could do with some pruning, but definitely worth seeing for Beryl Reid and Coral Browne's performances.

G-R-Lea I did not see the stage play upon which this film is based (too young) but, based on its own merits, this film surely deserves a closer look.The central trio of performers (Reid, York, Browne) provide career "bests" and there are some amusing vignettes from the others (Fraser, in particular, as a truly odious soap actor).The much-discussed sex scene is, by today's standards (and, it would seem, even those of the 1960s stage play), tame, but its real value as a display of the shift of power between the three central characters is very neatly worked through in the closing quarter.The final five minutes of (self-) destruction is heartbreaking, with excellent use made of the music track.In short: miss it and miss out.