8 Elizabeth Taylor Films to Stream this Weekend

I go through phases.

I like to learn and go deep on topics (I would attend college forever if someone else paid for it), and in the early 2000s I went through a classic Hollywood phase. That mini-obsession is most of why I love The Studio, btw. Highly recommend. Biographies about big stars, all the old movies our library had on hand, all kinds of trivia and details. One of my favorite podcasts even now is You Must Remember This. I’ve seen almost every single Montgomery Clift movie, most Brando, most Marilyn.

Most Elizabeth Taylor…

One of my favorite pieces of trivia is that Elizabeth Taylor is/was Carrie Fisher’s stepmother. The biography I have of hers is one of the few history books I’ve read more than once.

I even have a trunk novel very loosely inspired by Taylor (that book is going to be so good when I eventually finish it).

For no reason whatsoever, I’ve been thinking a lot about Taylor this last week, and wanting to rewatch some of her classics (and watch for the first time some of the ones I missed)1.

You probably do too.

In no particular order2

A Place in the Sun : My favorite favorite of all her movies, but probably because of Montgomery Clift (I went through a phase. I love him). Liz is great in this (of course) but she’s better known for other performances. That said, Charlie Chaplin apparently called it the greatest film made about America. She is just so utterly glamorous in this movie, which incidentally is part of the plot (based on a Theodore Dreiser novel that is in turn based on a true crime story). Perfect casting. No notes.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof : Paul Newman and Taylor in a family drama based on a Tennessee Williams play. I love a family saga, especially with questions of infidelity and inheritance and all the secrets. Please note that the film script greatly (completely?) reduced the play’s original criticism of homophobia, but what remains is still great. Taylor’s husband died tragically during the filming of this movie, and you have to assume that affected her performance.

Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? : I believe this was Liz’s final film with then-husband Richard Burton, and it earned her best reviews (and second Oscar). She gained thirty pounds for the role. The couple’s off-screen chemistry is harnessed into this drama about a small gathering at the home of a college professor. It’s essentially about the couple’s marriage, and I do love a good character study.

Giant : Big sweeping epic also starring James Dean and Rock Hudson (who later got AIDS and Liz used her enormous celebrity to bring sufferers of the disease attention and support, but that’s a separate post). This movie is more than 3 hours long, so plan accordingly, but well worth the investment (earned Dean a posthumous Oscar). The film is about a Texas oil family, dealing with changing economics, along with the racism, segregation and patriarchy of the early twentieth century. Liz was selected for the role by Rock Hudson (chosen over Grace Kelly).

Suddenly Last Summer : This film is based on a Tennessee Williams play and also stars Katherine Hepburn and Montgomery Clift. I only remember a bit of this film, mostly that it’s a bit unhinged. Fascinatingly so. Taylor’s character is being evaluated to receive a lobotomy and that premise alone should make you want to watch.

Butterfield 8 : Though Taylor reportedly did not like her role as a call girl in this film, did not want to do it, felt like she had a gun to her head, and the film has 47% score on Rotten Tomatoes … it did win her her first Oscar. That’s all I will say. SHE is worth watching, at least.

Father of the Bride : (not the one with Steve Martin) After growing up a child star, this was the first of Taylor’s adult roles, though she was maybe only 17 or 18 when it filmed. It was released the same month that she married Conrad Hilton, and of course the marketing and reception was affected by that. The wedding itself was organized by MGM.

Cleopatra : Famously the first time a film star (Taylor) was paid $1 million dollars. Also famously the film during which Taylor had an extramarital affair with Richard Burton. Also famously the most expensive film ever made up to that point and nearly bankrupted the studio. Also famously more than four hours long. Watch for its film history significance, not for the content itself.

Raintree County : Honorable mention because it’s another film with Monty Cliff, but it’s not great. During filming, he got in a terrible car accident, sustaining such extreme injuries that it changed the way his face looked. He spent 2 months recovering, but the epic historical romance still did well since audiences were curious to see the change in his appearance. (Watch on TUBI )