DIRECTOR: Robert Aldrich
Robert Aldrich’s The Killing of Sister George is a bruising, claustrophobic melodrama about identity, power, and the collapse of a woman’s carefully constructed world. Adapted by Lukas Heller, from Frank Marcus’s play, it follows June Buckridge—known to millions as “Sister George,” (Beryl Reed) the beloved, saintly nurse she plays on a BBC radio soap. Off‑air, June is the opposite: hard‑drinking, foul‑mouthed, domineering, and increasingly terrified that her career is slipping away.
Her private life is no steadier. June lives with Childie, her much younger, emotionally fragile partner, whom she bullies out of insecurity and fear of abandonment. As rumors swirl that the BBC plans to kill off her character, June’s grip on both her job and her relationship begins to crumble. The network’s icy executive, Mrs. Croft, exploits the chaos, manipulating Childie and widening the rift between the two women.
THE FIRST LOOK INSIDE A LESBIAN BAR
Aldrich does an excellent job here, blending the drama and the camp, just like he did with Bette and Joan in “Baby Jane.” There is a gratuitous and embarrassing seduction scene that should have been left on the cutting-room floor. However, Beryl Reid is marvelous as “Sister George,” and the relationship between George and Childie (Susannah York) seems precisely right. Meanwhile, Coral Browne is perfection as the predatory Mrs Croft, who holds all the cards. “The Killing of Sister George” follows in the footsteps of “Advice and Consent” six years before, only this time, it’s a lesbian bar.
STREAMING: Kino Lorber (YouTube)
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