A View From The Bridge (1999)

**A View From The Bridge** is a 1999 drama, which is based off the novel by Arthur Miller.

## Episode Information

The Carbone family are awaiting the arrival from Sicily of Beatrice’s cousins Marco and Rodolpho. he cousins arrive late one night, and the Carbone family welcome them. When Catherine and Rodolpho decide to get married, Eddie reports the cousins as illegal immigrants.

## Cast

* Lucas Cooper as Eddie
* Joanna Travis as Beatrice
* Eleanor Crooks as Catherine
* Michael Cooper as Marco
* Steve Galloway as Rodolpho

## Trivia

1. This movie is based off a novel by Arthur Miller.

## Release Date For UK

* Cinemas - 25th June 1999
* VHS - 6th September 1999
* DVD - 25th June 2001
* Actor Plus - 7th June 2019

## Summary

The film begins with lawyer Alfieri addresses the audience; he begins to narrate the story of Eddie Carbone. Eddie lives with his wife, Beatrice, and her orphaned niece, Catherine, whom they have taken in. Eddie's pronounced concern for Catherine's propriety masks a sexual infatuation with Catherine that will become pivotal over the course of the play. He demonstrates these feelings early: as he arrives home from his work at the docks, accompanied by two fellow longshoremen, Catherine leans out the window and greets the men. Eddie later takes her to task for being flirtatious. Over dinner, Eddie tells Beatrice that her Cousins Rodolpho and Marco will be arriving the next morning from Italy; they will work illegally in America, sending money back home to Italy, and while they do so, will stay with Eddie, Beatrice, and Catherine.

Rudolpho and Marco arrive the next day, thanking the Carbones heartily for their hospitality. Quiet and hardworking, Marco mentions that he has a wife and three children at home that he will be sending money to. His younger brother, Rodolpho, however, seems like a bit of a loose cannon. He has no family to support and wants to stay in America indefinitely as a musician. He sings a jazz song for the family's entertainment that night.

Over the ensuing weeks, Eddie notices that Rodolpho is spending more and more time with Catherine, and begins to feel jealous. He convinces himself that Rodolpho is, in fact, homosexual, and only pursuing Catherine because he wants to marry her to become a legal citizen. Eddie confronts Catherine about Rodolpho, and she, upset, turns to Beatrice for advice. Suspecting Eddie's hidden feelings for Catherine, Beatrice advises her to marry Rodolpho after all. By marrying Catherine off, she hopes she can get the young couple to move out.

Eddie seeks out the advice of Alfieri; he wants to know how he can get the brothers deported, but Alfieri tells him his only recourse is to report them to immigration services. Unsatisfied with this answer, Eddie soon finds an opportunity to vent his anger, injuring Rodolpho under the pretense of an accident. This angers Marco, who doesn't believe the injury was accidental, and he threatens Eddie.

Some months have passed since the events of act one. Rodolpho and Catherine, alone in the house, have sex. They have decided to marry. As they exit the bedroom, Eddie stumbles in drunk and guesses what they have been up to. Unable to control his feelings anymore, he first passionately kisses Catherine; then, after pushing him to the floor, kisses Rodolpho to “prove” his homosexuality. A tussle ensues, and Eddie orders Rodolpho out of the house.

Eddie visits Alfieri again seeking legal advice, offering the kiss as proof of Rodolpho's homosexuality, and arguing that he is only marrying Catherine for citizenship. Again, Alfieri tells Eddie that he cannot help him. Desperate, Eddie calls immigration services and reports Rodolpho and Marco. When officers later appear and apprehend the brothers, Eddie pretends to be as surprised as anyone else by the affair, but his act doesn't fool anyone. Marco spits in his face and publicly denounces him for killing his children back in Italy.

Marco and Rodolpho are released from prison, however, after Alfieri posts their bail. He explains the brothers' differing situations: Rodolpho, once he marries Catherine, will be free to stay in America; Marco, however, must go back to Italy. Incensed, Marco confronts Eddie on the day of his brother's marriage to Catherine. Eddie attacks him with a knife, but Marco turns it back upon him. Stabbed by his own knife, Eddie dies in the arms of his long-suffering wife, Beatrice. Alfieri, narrating the ending of the play to the audience, admits his ambivalence over Eddie's death.