''The Rose Tattoo'' is a 1955 American film adaptation of the

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thr ...

play of the same name. It was adapted by Williams and

Hal Kanter Hal Kanter (December 18, 1918 – November 6, 2011) was a writer, producer and director, principally for comedy actors such as Bob Hope, Jerry Lewis, and Elvis Presley (in '' Loving You'' and ''Blue Hawaii''), for both feature films and televis ...

and directed by

Daniel Mann Daniel Chugerman (August 8, 1912 – November 21, 1991), known professionally as Daniel Mann, was an American stage, film and television director. Originally trained as an actor by Sanford Meisner, between 1952 and 1987 he directed over 31 feat ...

, with stars

Anna Magnani Anna Maria Magnani (; 7 March 1908 – 26 September 1973) was an Italian actress.Obituary ''Variety'', 3 October 1973, pg. 47 She was known for her explosive acting and earthy, realistic portrayals of characters. Born in Rome, she worked her ...

, Burt Lancaster, Marisa Pavan and

Jo Van Fleet Catherine Josephine Van Fleet (December 29, 1915"The Bi ...

. Williams originally wrote the play for

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Anna Magnani to play on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

in 1951, but she declined the offer because of her difficulty with the English language at the time. By the time of this film adaptation, she was ready. Anna Magnani won the

Academy Award for Best Actress The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role in a film released that year ...

for her performance, and the film won Best Art Direction and Best Cinematography receiving five other nominations including

Best Picture This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

and Best Supporting Actress for Pavan.

Plot

Serafina Delle Rose (

), a Sicilian seamstress, living in a community in proximity to the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

, fiercely proud of and loyal to her truck-driving husband Rosario, is pregnant with her second child. While he is sleeping, Estelle (

Virginia Grey Virginia Grey (March 22, 1917 – July 31, 2004) was an American actress who appeared in over 100 films and a number of radio and television shows from the 1930s to the early 1980s. Biography Grey was born on March 22, 1917, in Edendale, Calif ...

) asks Serafina to make a shirt for her lover from some expensive silk material; Serafina does not know that the lover is Rosario, and that earlier that afternoon, Estelle got a tattoo of a rose on her chest to match Rosario's. That night, Rosario is killed in an accident while trying to evade police during a smuggling run. When Serafina discovers her beloved husband's demise she collapses, and later the local doctor informs her daughter Rosa ( Marisa Pavan) and the women of the neighborhood that Serafina has miscarried. Three years later, Serafina has become a recluse, allowing her appearance and reputation to deteriorate, to Rosa's embarrassment. Serafina decides to attend her daughter's graduation, but two women arrive demanding Serafina quickly mend their bandanas for a festival. Serafina reluctantly does so, but is appalled by their talk of men and reprimands them. One of the women, Bessie (

Jo Van Fleet Catherine Josephine Van Fleet (December 29, 1915"The Bi ...

), takes offense and mocks Serafina with Rosario's infidelity. Serafina sits alone in the dark until Rosa comes home, and is infuriated when Rosa introduces her to her new sailor boyfriend Jack Hunter (

Ben Cooper Ben Cooper (September 30, 1933 – February 24, 2020) was an American actor of film and television, who won a Golden Boot Award in 2005 for his work in westerns. Stage Cooper appeared on Broadway in '' Life With Father'' (1939). He debuted in ...

). After her interrogation, he confides that he is a virgin. She forces him to vow before a statue of the Virgin Mary that he will respect Rosa's innocence. Determined to find out the truth about her husband, Serafina heads to the church (where a bazaar is being held) to ask the priest if her husband had confessed to an affair with another woman. When he refuses to answer, she attacks him, and a truck driver named Alvaro ( Burt Lancaster) pulls her off. Alvaro drives the dazed Serafina home in his banana truck, where she offers to repair his torn shirt. Serafina loans Alvaro the rose silk shirt that she had sewn the night of her husband's death until she is able to repair it, and they agree to meet later that night. Alvaro returns, having impulsively gotten a rose tattooed on his chest. Serafina is disgusted and tries to throw him out, then demands that Alvaro drive her to a club her husband used to attend. Once there, she meets Estelle, who confesses and shows Serafina the rose tattooed on her chest as a symbol of her love for Rosario. Returning home, Serafina smashes the urn containing Rosario's ashes, and invites Alvaro to return in the night. Alvaro turns up hours later severely intoxicated and, mortified by his actions, Serafina leaves him in a drunken stupor and retires to bed. That night Rosa returns home and falls asleep on the sofa; Alvaro awakens and, still drunk, mistakes Rosa for Serafina and tries to kiss her; Rosa wakes up and screams, and Serafina gets rid of him. The following morning Serafina finds him on top of a boat mast outside her house begging for her forgiveness. Serafina and Rosa are extremely embarrassed and Serafina refuses to leave the house in order to make him come down, much to Rosa's frustration. At that moment Jack arrives and asks Serafina if he can marry Rosa. Serafina is stunned, but seeing that this is what Rosa wants she gives them her consent and they leave to be married. Serafina then calls Alvaro down from the boat mast before declaring in front of her neighbors that they have to pick up from where they left off the night before. They enter her house and shut the door. A lively pop tune is heard starting up on Serafina's

player piano A player piano (also known as a pianola) is a self-playing piano containing a pneumatic or electro-mechanical mechanism, that operates the piano action via programmed music recorded on perforated paper or metallic rolls, with more modern im ...

, along with the sounds of their partying and laughter.

Cast

– Serafina Delle Rose * Burt Lancaster – Alvaro Mangiacavallo * Marisa Pavan – Rosa Delle Rose *

– Seaman Jack Hunter *

– Estelle Hohengarten *

Jo Van Fleet Catherine Josephine Van Fleet (December 29, 1915"The Bi ...

– Bessie * Sandro Giglio – Father De Leo *

Mimi Aguglia Mimi Aguglia (21 December 1884 – 31 July 1970) was an Italian actress, born Girolama Aguglia in Palermo, Sicily, while her mother, actress Giuseppina Aguglia, was playing Desdemona in ''Othello''. Biography She was born in the wings of t ...

– Assunta * Florence Sundstrom – Flora * Jeanne Hart - Violetta

Production and release

Much of the film was shot on location in Key West, Florida, although the setting is not specifically mentioned in the film. The house featured in the film stands to this day and is known, appropriately, as the "Rose Tattoo House". The premiere of the film was held in New York City at the

Hotel Astor Hotel Astor was a hotel on Times Square in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Built in 1905 and expanded in 1909–1910 for the Astor family, the hotel occupied a site bounded by Broadway, Shubert Alley, and 44th and 45th Str ...

on December 12, 1955, with

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are ''All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

, Marlon Brando,

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...

and

Jayne Mansfield Jayne Mansfield (born Vera Jayne Palmer; April 19, 1933 – June 29, 1967) was an American actress, singer, nightclub entertainer, and ''Playboy'' Playmate. A sex symbol of the 1950s and early 1960s while under contract at 20th Century Fox, Man ...

among the celebrities in attendance.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rose Tattoo, The 1955 films 1955 comedy-drama films American comedy-drama films American black-and-white films American films based on plays Films set in New Orleans Films featuring a Best Actress Academy Award-winning performance Films featuring a Best Drama Actress Golden Globe-winning performance Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe-winning performance Films whose art director won the Best Art Direction Academy Award Films whose cinematographer won the Best Cinematography Academy Award Paramount Pictures films Films directed by Daniel Mann Films produced by Hal B. Wallis Films with screenplays by Tennessee Williams Films scored by Alex North Films based on works by Tennessee Williams 1950s English-language films 1950s American films