This lively, bellowing camp-drama from screenwriter Tennessee Williams (via his unsuccessful play "The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore") makes for a frequently funny--and just as frequently odd--showpiece for its stars, Elizabeth Taylor (although too young for her role) and Richard Burton (too old for his). Is the rich, much-married--and now currently ailing--"Sissy" Goforth about to go forth into the night--and what of the uninvited stranger who has climbed the mountain of her island fortress in the Mediterranean...could he be the Angel of Death? (He has a knack for calling on sick ladies just before they expire). The high-powered headliners don't get to chew up all the scenery; there are smaller-sized tours-de-force for both Noël Coward and Joanna Shimkus in supporting roles. Director Joseph Losey freely allows his picture to go over the top, aided and abetted by Taylor's bitchy lashing out, but he brings in the dark clouds for a somber closer--a finale that takes some adjusting to (which may be why admirers of the film return multiple times). Williams was reportedly fond of the picture, and cult director John Waters has said "Boom" is his favorite movie. It certainly looks good in widescreen as photographed by Douglas Slocombe (credited as the "lighting cameraman"), while composer John Barry contributes an unusual percussive score. Personal taste will have to determine if this battle-of-wills between the dying woman in white and the enigmatic man dressed in a samurai's robe is worth all the trouble; however, for better or worse, "Boom" is never less than entertaining. **1/2 from ****
Review of Boom!
