Terrance Rattigan was a popular British play-write who wrote plays that dramatized his own personal frustrations with life, dealing often with relationship failures and sexual frustrations. As a troubled homosexual living in post-war England his lifestyle would have been deeply frowned upon and, frustrated with the public mindset of the time, channeled much of that into his characters and stories. One such character is Major David Angus Pollock, one of many characters in his two part play Separate Tables. The Major has been accused of sexual harassment by several women while they were attending the theater. While there is some doubt over the veracity of the claims, the Major freely admits that he can’t relate with people he knows, only strangers he encounters in the dark. Many, over the years, have speculated that this character, and many others in Rattigan’s many works, are thinly veiled depictions of the author himself.
Separate Tables began life as two different one-act plays, both known collectively by the same name. These two plays were opened up to create a more fleshed out screenplay, adding extra scenes that allowed the stories to intermingle a little. This helps, somewhat, but it still has the distinct feeling of being two different stories juxtaposed together. The first of these stories deals with John Malcolm (Burt Lancaster) and his ex-wife Anne (Rita Hayworth). Anne teases John that she is now engaged and John lets it known that he, too, is engaged but doesn’t let on that the woman he’s engaged to is Miss Pat Cooper (Wendy Hiller), the manager of the hotel they are all staying at. Anne, however, has designs to seduce John back into her arms but he is able to see through her machinations to what is really going on in her life and why she is suddenly interested in rekindling the flam between them.
The second story involves Major Pollock (David Niven) whose reputation is on the line after getting in trouble with the law for sexually harassing several young women in a darkened theater. He tries in vain to intercept the newspaper running the story before anyone else in the hotel sees it but his attempts only rouse suspicion, especially from Mrs. Railton-Bell (Gladys Cooper), who has a strict sense of morality, and the more compassionate Lady Matheson (Cathleen Nesbit). When the news gets out, Mrs. Railton-Bell insists on holding a meeting for the purpose of expelling Pollock from the hotel. The news of his improprieties is especially hard on Sibyl (Deborah Kerr), the daughter of Mrs. Railton-Bell, who is timid around others and has allowed her mother to control her life. Sybil and the Major have formed an uneasy friendship thanks to their shared social awkwardness and the news of his indiscretions, especially when he admits that it wasn’t the first time it had happened, devastates her. The other residents of the hotel do not side with Mrs. Railton-Bell but she insists anyway that the Major must be expelled from the hotel at once.
In the original two plays the same two actors played the lead roles in both stories. This allowed the actors to demonstrate their versatility in such short order before a live audience. When combining the two stories into one full length film it becomes virtually impossibly to utilize that gimmick without confusing the audience. Still, with some make-up and split-screen effects it could be accomplished albeit complicating the whole filming process and ballooning the budget and shooting schedule. Instead, the film version opted to simplify the whole process and just cast things conventionally. While some of the plays’ original intent is lost with this decision, people unfamiliar with the film’s stage origins wouldn’t even notice.
By casting such celebrated stars as Burt Lancaster, Rita Hayworth, David Niven and Deborah Kerr and allowing them the space to dig into their respective characters it really helps, too. Kerr and Niven would both receive Oscar nominations for this, as did Wendy Hiller for her more subtle but equally impressive portrayal of Pat Cooper. Hiller’s acting here isn’t showy, nor bombastic like Burt Lancaster’s is, but there are little things like a slight tremble in her lower lip when her emotions are getting the better of her that showcase a realism to the situation that a lessor actor would struggle to replicate. Likewise, David Niven is outstanding. His conversation with Sybil is absolutely devastating as he tries to explain to her why he is the way he is. This is a man in conflict with himself, knowing his weaknesses and completely unable to do anything about it. The film’s final scene when the other patrons of the hotel speak to him, showing him unspoken support when he thinks he will be thrown out, speaks volumes to his emotional fragility and the need for friendship and understanding.
The most surprising character was Sibyl, though. Deborah Kerr was a beautiful young woman. I know her primarily from her romantic lead performance in From Here to Eternityalthough I have seen her in other films. Seeing her here was eye-opening, much like it was seeing Bette Davis in Now, Voyager. Deborah Kerr has been done up to look plain and downtrodden, almost unrecognizable. On top of her physical appearance she also sells it physically in everything from her mannerisms to her voice. This is a woman who has long ago gotten used to being badgered by an overbearing mother and has given up on ever having a happy life away from that influence. Even when she finally stands up to her mother and refuses to obey her there is that awkwardness, indicative of a woman who is unaccustomed to standing up for herself. This is a transformative performance and Kerr has really sunk her teeth into what could have been considered an unflattering part.
Rita Hayworth, likewise has a part that could be considered unflattering, at least once it has played out. In this way echoes of the plays duo casting can be seen. When her character, Anne, convinces John to come up to her room one evening it turns violent as he grabs her by the throat and exposes her machinations. He calls attention to her aging, making note of the lines that are beginning to form on her face betraying the ravages of time. In that moment the lighting used to illuminate her face shows us, the audience, that this glamour girl, once one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood and pin-up girl of the 1940’s, was now middle aged and using make-up to try and hide the signs. It’s a bold choice to go this route and it’s refreshing that an actress who was so associated with her youthful beauty would be willing to put herself out there like that. It speaks for her own character and self-image that she took on this daring role. Up until this scene she is filmed in such a way to hide the signs of age, allowing this one moment to become all the more shockingly powerful.
This film received mixed reactions thanks to its complex narrative structure and downbeat nature. The star-studded ensemble definitely elevates the picture and smooths over some of the more awkward elements needed to bridge the two plays. The worst of these is a side story involving Charles (Rod Taylor) and Jean (Audrey Dalton) who only seem to be in the story to add a little romance and pad the runtime. They never get enough to do to justify their inclusion and only distract from the far more interesting main stories. It’s a minor misstep but a misstep nevertheless. Overall, this is a nice little character study and actor’s showcase that is worth watching for those reasons alone. It just needed a little more work bridging the two stories more organically and it could have been a real classic.
Academy Award Nominations:
Best Motion Picture: Harold Hecht
Best Actor: David Niven (won)
Best Actress: Deborah Kerr
Best Supporting Actress: Wendy Hiller (won)
Best Screenplay - Based on Material from Another Medium: John Gay and Terence Rattigan
Best Cinematography - Black-and-White: Charles Lang
Best Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture: David Raksin
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Release Date: December 18, 1958
Running Time: 100 Minutes
Not Rated
Starring: Rita Hayworth, Deborah Kerr, David Niven, Wendy Hiller and Burt Lancaster
Directed By: Delbert Mann
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