MovieChat Forums > The Night of the Iguana (1964) Discussion > Deborah Kerr was fabulous and outshined ...

Deborah Kerr was fabulous and outshined Ava Gardner...

posted 11 years ago by TheMysteriousLady
5 replies | jump to latest

I keep seeing posts about how hot Ava Gardner was, and what a great actress she was, and I'm not contesting any of that. But for me, Deborah Kerr was the clear standout of the film. A very nuanced portrayal of a character with many layers and hidden depths. (Ava's character also had hidden depths, but her performance was over-the-top.)

And while they were about the same age--44 and 43, respectively, I think Deborah looked about 10 years younger than Ava.

[–] bhoover247 11 years ago

I'm not sure, but I think Deborah Kerr didn't live quite as hard as Ava. They were both beautiful ladies.

[–] King_Of_Fuh 11 years ago

I didn't think Kerr really outshone Ava. I loved both of them in this and really loved Ava bringing out her southern accent. They were just different characters. Ava had begun to show her age but was still sexy as aitchee LL.

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[–] markedjuan 9 years ago

Deborah Kerr had the better role. Maxine was essentially a supporting role thoug it was originally written as a lead. The part was cut to bits in the original play, which infuriated the star playing Maxine, Bette Davis. The producers and Tennessee Williams felt the play needed some cuts and it was Maxine that received most of it. It left Davis waiting in her dressing room for long periods for her next scene during each performance. Consequently, for Davis, she didn't get a Tony nomination. It was Margaret Leighton who snagged the nomination for her performance as Hannah.

[–] brux (14840) 5 years ago

I thought Ava Gardner had the hotter role, in terms of emotional heat. I love both actresses, but Ava Gardner was so beautiful and vulnerable in this movie. Kerr was fabulous as well and I hate that every comment in MovieChat is always about some stupid kind of competition.

[–] brux (14840) 5 years ago

No she didn't ... and why do you internet idiots always have to make everything a competition ... go jump in the lake.