MovieChat Forums > Splendor in the Grass (1961) Discussion > Strange Film

Strange Film

posted 11 years ago by alg11297
8 replies | jump to latest

This has to be one of the stangestt films I've ever seen...even more so since it was written by William Inge and directed by Kazan. It seems to have gone in every direction and never found it's soul. Natalie Wood looks so great in every shot you wonder where her mental breakdown came from (if it's that). Could the theme be that not getting laid leads you to become crazy?

The real acting was Pat Hingle and the real unacting was Warren Beatty. He never seems to have any emotions at all.

The cinimatography was awsome even though there are shots where the shadows are so obviously put there it spoils the whole thing. Natalie lying in bed with the lights solely on her eyes.

It just seemed to meander with no point. How did she get better at the asylum? Where could you find pizza in New Heaven in 1929? Why doesn't his sister show she is somewhat mature?

I really couldn't make out what was happening. And although it's only a little over 2 hours, it felt like forever. Maybe it's a chick flick.

[–] beetiesmom 11 years ago

I won't go into everything here, except that I always felt the one who should have been "put away" was Bud's father, Ace. What a jack-ass---I hated this character! (And why did they hire a woman who was 24 years older to play Ace's wife??) Also, I think I learned somewhere that pizza was introduced to the East Coast in the 20s, no toppings other than sauce and cheese. So, this would be accurate.

[–] EllisFowler 10 years ago

You do realize that New HAven ("Heaven??") pizza has been nationally famous for many, MANY years. . . ?

[–] Bree_33 10 years ago

This movie kept my attention all the way through. Natalie Wood's performance is brilliant.

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[–] Pgeen 9 years ago

You obviously just didn't get it. It's a masterpiece in my opinion.

[–] 9 years ago

[deleted]

[–] judygmartin 9 years ago

Yes, yes. yes. Brilliant, without a doubt. I sometimes wonder about the average age of the posters to these thread –13? 14?

[–] Lester_Burnham_Risen 9 years ago

Could the theme be that not getting laid leads you to become crazy?

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Yes, the movie IS about the importance of getting your Wild Oats [boy and gal] as a mid teen or it will really eat the $hit outa you later, eg the school teacher here was a great example as she had projected her sexual frustrations into misinterpreting the titular poem about very young children into sexual references of her own lost youth.

moreso she then taught it in her classroom the wrong way.

another great example is Angela in American Beauty, small f feminist fueled to shun boys and left at 18 as a frigid girl with a foul mouth.

http://www.kindleflippages.com/ablog/

[–] liscarkat (16508) 4 years ago

"Natalie Wood looks so great in every shot you wonder where her mental breakdown came from"

Only unattractive people have mental breakdowns?