SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Rijndri Load of rubbish!!

Mjeteconer Just perfect...

JinRoz For all the hype it got I was expecting a lot more!

ElMaruecan82 Just when "A Streetcar Named Desire" made me think more caution would have prevented Blanche's descent into madness, Elia Kazan provided a perfect counter-example with "Splendor in the Grass", a passionate high-school movie about teenage love, but also a harrowing psychology study of the devastating effects of social and parental rules.Indeed, for all its evocative title (it's a quote from Wordsworth' poetic ode to youth memories), the film can be summarized in one word: frustration... of the sexual type. This is not the least original theme for a movie directed in 1961 but is that surprising from Kazan? It's interesting that Natalie Wood starred in another story about forbidden love the same year, but here, the 'music' isn't quite the same, as the love isn't even forbidden in the first place despite something horribly unavoidable about its heartbreak.Kazan's movies have always centered on characters with a devouring need, the strongest torment being to please someone. James Dean wanted his father to be proud of him in "East of Eden" but in a heartbreaking scene, he couldn't even reach him for a hug. Terry Malloy wanted to please his friends until he realized it was at the expenses of his self-esteem (remember how he called himself in that taxi). Blanche Dubois was sexually attracted to a brutish man while she more depended on kindness.And these characters all found walls of misunderstanding that filled their hearts with guilt and resentment. Some triumphed over their demons, some didn't... but the main symptom was the fear of rejection, one would rather reject himself than being rejected. In "Splendor in the Grass" love is mutual and undeniable but it plays both the role of the driver and the obstacle, so guilt is self-inflicted despite the fact that the blame can be easily put on the parents or the gossips of 'good' people. Would you see today two young adults being forbidden to express their love? It was still difficult in 1961 but the film is set in different times, at the dawn of the Great Depression, for the kind of depression that even money can't solve. The story is about Bud Stamper (Warren Bearry) and Wilma Dean Loomis "Deanie" (Natalie Wood) and starts with the peak of their love, no courting or flirting, these two youngsters love each other, they're in the car and are making out. Deanie can't go "further" but there's a hint we're not dealing with any predictable scenario. Bud is angry, needs to take some fresh air before driving Deanie home. They know they have to wait, but we know they're in a hurry, look how violently Deanie throws her teddy-bear as if she was tired of being a child. The following scenes indicate that they might wait a little longer as we see both of them being treated as their parent's children, not as adults. Deanie's mother (Audrey Christie) is less concerned about being late than being spoiled, embodying the norm about good girls waiting for marriage, though her passionless description of sex doesn't make it a patience-rewarding achievement. The idea that "men don't love like women" is also brought up differently by Bud's boorish (and nouveau riche) father played by scene-stealing Pat Hingle. He tells him to wait till he finishes Yale, which means four years, and tries to have good time with the other girls. Poor Bud couldn't even wait four days! The "there's two kinds of girls" idea have always been a darling for Martin Scorsese, and given Kazan's influence, I'm pretty sure "Splendor in the Grass" inspired his debut "I Call First" but the case of Bud is more heartbreaking because he doesn't even care about "bad girls".From our perspective, the parents' misconceptions are wrong but the Oscar-winning screenplay from William Inge shows that even by the time's standards, these kids were victims. Bud idealizes Deanie too much to have physical contact with her, and she loves him too much to imagine sex with someone else, and in that magnificent moment where she literally begs him for sex, I could feel the passion killing her from inside. At the end, the two lovers could only resent each other as the sources of their frustrations.But I don't think the film idealizes love, because there's no doubt the parents love their kids, though in a destructive way, it doesn't even put sex on a pedestal as it's mainly associated with debauchery or the slutty behavior of Bud's sister. What the film does is highlighting the hypocrisy of society and parents who regard sex as impure, ignoring its crucial importance in one's development. We have two parents who unknowingly crush the soul and spirit of their children in the name of some idealization, leading the most vulnerable one to a harrowing breakdown. Natalie Wood was rightfully Oscar-nominated for her spectacular performance. Bud's confusion and existential dead-end could only count on the Karmatic effect of the 1929 crash ... which ironically, didn't have much impact on the Loomises for reasons that show the script's brilliance. And the certitude that the film was less about the kids than their parents is that the saving moment for both Bud and Deanie came from Deanie's father (Fred Stewart) and allowed the film to conclude on a bittersweet note, sweet underlined. Now, I know I have a good film when it psychologically involves me and the performances of the two leads did justice to the legacy of Kazan who knew how to get the best acting. But there's a moment near the end where I was like "didn't the mother learn?" I was about to hate the film but the father made me applaud and repeat "bravo" several times. That the best gesture came from a parent proved there was a light of hope after all.

antoniocasaca123 I found the film beautiful. Perhaps the best film ever to show the consequences of sexual repression. Natalie Wood is absolutely superb, both in terms of beauty and in terms of her fantastic performance. Warren Beatty, in his first film role, is fine too. Elia Kazan knew how to make movies. This "splendor in the grass", "on the waterfront", "a streetcar named desire", among others, are movies that remain in our memory, which made us experience sensations and feelings, which "touched" us in our soul.

SimonJack Many of the reviewers of this movie on IMDb found it heart-breaking or sad. I can understand the disappointment when something I've fantasized or dreamed about doesn't turn out as I would have hoped. Perhaps that explains the let-down of this film for many. There is no doubt that "Splendor in the Grass" is an authentic love story. It is about a very deeply held love by a young couple. And, I think Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty play their parts exceptionally well. So, this is not a story about the vast majority of teenage "loves" – those first romantic inclinations most of us have when young. And, whether they were infatuations, hormonal reactions, or other attractions, the vast majority of us got over the vast majority of those encounters. Indeed, such has been the plight of men and women from the beginning. But this film is much more than one couple's intense love story. It is a coming-of-age story. It is a story about family. It is a morality story about life in the early to mid-20th century. It is a story about human frailties, parental love, parental mistakes, abuse, obedience, trust and rebellion. All those elements are in the movie. And they are masterfully crafted into a story by William Inge, with superb direction by Elia Kazan. Some reviews criticize the parents as stern, intolerant, hypocrites who stymied true love. But that misses some very important points of the film. Mrs. Loomis (played by Audrey Christie) tells her daughter, Deannie (Natalie Wood) that she tried to raise her well. Just as her mother had done, and her grandmother before her. Struggles between teens and parents have been a big part of Western society and culture for a long time – at least since the industrial revolution. And that's not likely to change. And some things are as true now as they were then. Even though there are pushes from some sources that challenge the traditional mores, including respect for women, many quarters of our society still hold these values. Mrs. Loomis tells Deannie, "Boys don't respect a girl they can go all the way with. Boys want a nice girl for a wife." The converse of that is that a girl doesn't want to marry a boy that doesn't respect her.A couple of reviews suggested that "young love" was ruined by sexual taboos. By young love, I suppose they mean teen or early infatuations or flings. Sexual gratification is one thing, but it's not love. It should be part of love, but love is much bigger, much more, much greater and more meaningful and lasting than that. I remember a scene from the 2001 movie, "Captain Corelli's Mandolin" that describes real love perfectly. Dr. Iannis (John Hurt) is talking to his daughter, Pelagia (Penélope Cruz). He says, "Love is not breathlessness. It is not excitement. It is not the desire to mate every second of the day. It is not lying awake at night imagining that he is kissing every part of your body. No. Don't blush. I'm telling you some truths. That is just being in love, which any of us can convince ourselves we are. Love itself is what is left over, when being in love has burned away. Doesn't sound very exciting, does it? But it is."In "Splendor in the Grass," Dr. Judd tells Deannie that it's popular to blame parents for everything these days. Remember – this is in the early to mid-20th century. But, you can't change them, he tells her. She can only change herself. A line by Deannie's mother sums up the conclusion of the film nicely. Mrs. Loomis is talking to Deannie, and says: "You know, it would be nice if children could be born into this world with an absolute guarantee that they are going to have just the right kind of bringing up and all lead happy, normal lives. But, well, I guess when we get born, we just all have to take our chances."The end of the film is not a downer to me. Deannie loves another man and plans to marry him. Bud Stamper (Beatty) quit college after one year and married another girl he fell in love with. They have one child and she is pregnant with their second. They are living on his father's old ranch – something he always had wanted. The love that Deannie and Bud had in the past was special. It was their first and genuine. They are both happy now, and will be in their respective futures. Deannie now just needs to let go of her past and live for the present.

Ligeia313-1 This film has at its heart the problem of young people desperately in need of medical knowledge that neither the family doctor nor the parents will provide. It was not considered appropriate. Deanie's mother says, after the stresses of the girl's situation has caused a nervous breakdown, "Deanie, I told you what my mother told me." Bud's family doctor refuses to help him. In Dreiser's An American Tragedy (which became the film A Place in the Sun) the hero, Clive,is similarly not helped by the doctor he consults. His girlfriend becomes pregnant and she then "dies" in a boating accident. The older generation sees the whole subject as Trouble, and doesn't see medical information as important to impart.