We at New Times avoid the gym like Legionnaires’ disease, but we must admit that seeing a 30-something Burt Lancaster with his shirt off makes us want to hit the weights. And trust us, in A Rose Tattoo, director Daniel Mann makes sure Lancaster gets to show off the guns that earned him the nickname “Muscles and Teeth.” Adapted from Tennessee Williams’s classic 1955 play of the same name, the film brought sexy back to the big screen in a way that counters to our notions of the ’50s. It isn’t just Lancaster’s beefcake look — his Oscar-winning costar, Anna Magnani, does the sultry Italian thing; Marisa Pavan plays Magnini’s ingénue daughter; and Virginia Grey riffs on Veronica Lodge as the rich “other woman.” As a hometown bonus, the film was shot largely in Key West.

This Thursday’s screening will be just the beginning of a monthlong retrospective of Williams’s work that owner and curator Dana Keith has rightfully titled “Steamy Tennessee.” The series will culminate with a special drive-in screening of The Night of the Iguana January 25 at the W Hotel.
Thu., Jan. 14, 8:30 p.m., 2010