A SUMMER PLACE (1959)

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 1/5/11 at 1:18pm

Anyone else a fan?

I'm sure that moment with the Christmas tree inspired FEMALE TROUBLE.
Trailer

[Eris0303]

Posted: 1/5/11 at 1:36pm

The Christmas tree moment is overly soapy and laughable but the movie itself is pretty good. I enjoy it at least.

[WOSQ]

Posted: 1/5/11 at 2:22pm

They don't know how to make Fabulous movies like A Summer Place any more.

[There are good movies, bad movies and Fabulous movies, as in, "Oh, you have to see this movie. It's Fabulous."]

How did they get A list actors like Dorothy McGuire and Arthur Kennedy into this huge box of soap much less Richard Egan who was a solid B+ list actor?

The kids are adorable but Troy Donohue never smiles or even shows his teeth except the lowers once, and he doesn't take off his shirt. (All right, the question begs, was he gay or not gay?)

Could Sandra Dee act? I think she had moments in her career, but this question alone is almost worthy of a panel discussion.

And in a cameo we get Beulah Bondi, a great character actress from the Golden Age.

But there are few words to truly describe the fabulous lesbian actress Constance Ford. Indescribably wonderful plus she's good too.

I saw this piece of super trash when it came out and I was 9 or 10 years old. When I saw it again 35 years later I asked whose parents let me see this movie because mine sure wouldn't have: pre-marital sex and teen-age pregnancy, adultery, alcoholism, divorce and sex, Sex, SEX. I found it interesting how much of it I remembered exactly as I saw it in 1959 or 60.

I went to a screening in NYC sponsored by AMC and both Troy and Sandy were there and looked great. He did almost all of the talking. He was quite tall and she was tiny. This was maybe 3 years before Troy died of a heart attack that rumor had it was possibly brought on by Vioxx. A cross-country trip for Sandy was a huge deal because she was famously agoraphobic plus in recovery for pills and alcohol and just about everything else. She died also in her 60s maybe 5-6 years later.

This is a must-see and must-see again and again for everyone.

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/5/11 at 2:31pm

Love the movie, but I wanted to crawl right into it and kill that mother.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 1/5/11 at 3:44pm

Love the movie and love the theme music. I also loved Troy Donohue--and his beautiful spaking voice.

I think he was bi-sexual. I forget what book I read that in.

[kooky]

Posted: 1/6/11 at 9:03am

Wow, that was wonderful..... thanks for posting, brought back many memories.