
I first became interested in the film Last Summer around 2008 while researching the movies made by Frank Perry and his wife, Eleanor, who co-wrote the screenplays. They created a truly impressive series of films, beginning with the Oscar-nominated David and Lisa (1962) and continuing with intense dramas like Ladybug Ladybug (1963), and moving adaptations of Truman Capote’s stories, A Christmas Memory (1966) and The Thanksgiving Visitor (1967). They also made The Swimmer (1968), starring Burt Lancaster – probably their most famous film – and the powerfully honest Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970), which came out as their marriage was falling apart. While their films received praise when they were released, they’ve largely been forgotten, maybe because they didn’t quite align with the more experimental style of other American films from that time. Frank brought a traditional theatrical sensibility to his directing, while Eleanor, with her background in social work and psychology, had a deep understanding of complex human behavior in both children and adults. Their films are beautifully balanced and subtly powerful; they draw you in with their understated grace, and then deliver a devastating emotional impact.