Film Review
The Bachelor Party was the
second of two films which director Delbert Mann and writer Paddy
Chayefsky had adapted from a television play which they had previously
made for the series
The Philco
Television Playhouse. The first was
Marty (1955), Mann's first film for
the cinema and the film that won him his one and only Oscar for Best
Director. Whilst
The Bachelor
Party was nowhere near as successful as
Marty and ran into difficulties
with the Hollywood censor on account of its overt references to
abortion and marital infidelity, it garnered considerable critical
acclaim in some quarters and deserves to be considered one of Mann's
most insightful films, a grim but poignant reflection on the hazards
and rewards of married life.
Chayefsky's superb screenplay (which differs only slightly from his
original television play) is well-served by an excellent ensemble of
relatively unknown but highly talented actors, some of whom would go on
to greater things. Having recently made a promising debut
alongside Marilyn Monroe in
Bus Stop (1956), Don Murray is
well-cast as the conflicted, ambigious central character in
The Bachelor Party, proving that
exceptional good looks and acting ability are not necessarily mutually
exclusive. Murray's tortured portrayal of a young man who is
forced to confront the darker realities of married life shows the actor
at his best, and the subtlety with which he handles some of the film's
most intimate scenes can only add to their devastating poignancy.
Jack Warden, another fine actor at the start of his career, brings as
much depth and sincerity to his performance as the seemingly
trouble-free bachelor, and there some equally memorable contributions
from E.G. Marshall, Larry Blyden and Philip Abbott. Patricia
Smith (an actress far better known for her subsequent television work)
heightens the film's realism in her touching scenes with Murray and
Nancy Marchand, whilst Carolyn Jones has a strikingly ethereal presence
as the existential temptress who is so desperately in need of love
(bizarrely, she was the only member of the cast to be nominated for an
Oscar).
To wed, or not to wed, that is the question that has haunted man ever
since the institution of marriage first came into being. For
ninety harrowing minutes,
The
Bachelor Party mulls over this age-old conundrum, concluding, in
a slightly forced manner, that marriage is probably the least bad
option there is. Whilst Charlie's moment of epiphany at the end
of the film feels a little strained (it is the one and only weak point
in an otherwise flawless script), it has a ring of truth about
it. What is the alternative - a life of selfish, meaningless
debauchery, devoid of tenderness and commitment? Yet even as
Charlie takes his wife in his arms and offers her his undying love we
can see at once the storms that lie ahead. It was only a few
hours previously that Charlie came so close to destroying his marriage,
so easily led from the path of virtue by his yearning for
freedom. Aside from the slightly unconvincing ending, the film
tackles its subject matter with refreshing honesty and leaves a
suitably bitter aftertaste. Happy endings exist only in fiction.
© James Travers 2012
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Film Synopsis
Charlie is a New York bookkeeper who seeks to better himself by
attending night school to earn a degree, but his plans are threatened
when he discovers that his wife Helen is pregnant. He is in no
mood to attend the bachelor party of his office colleague Arnold, who
is about to head up the aisle in a few days' time, but he is persuaded
to join in the fun when his three other colleagues - Eddie, Walter and
Kenneth - agree that Arnold cannot escape the age-old ritual of the
stag night. Eddie, the only committed bachelor of the group,
takes charge of the evening's festivities, which begin respectably
enough with a quiet meal in a restaurant. The evening is still
young so the five men begin prowling the city's bars and
nightclubs. Far from being a joyous occasion, the bachelor party
turns into a melancholic orgy of introspection and, one by one, each of
the five friends reveals his disillusionment with life. Walter
lets slip that he has recently been diagnosed with asthma, a condition
that could soon put him in his grave unless he makes some major changes
to his life. Eddie's wild bachelor existence proves to be a
meaningless sham and Arnold, still a virgin, is unsure whether he
really wants to go through with the marriage. Charlie is tempted
to return to his adoring wife, but, resentful of the barren future that
lies ahead of him, he chooses to stay with his friends and see the
party through to its bitter end. As their heavy drinking begins
to take its toll, the revellers gatecrash a Bohemian party, where
Charlie is irresistibly drawn to an attractive young woman who offers
to spend what remains of the evening with him...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.