IMDb user comments for
A Place in the Sun (1951) More at IMDbPro »

Filter:

Best Chronological Prolific Authors Loved It Hated It Hide Spoilers:

Page 1 of 11:

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11]

Index

105 comments in total

---

49 out of 76 people found the following comment useful :-
An American Tragedy, on film, becomes an American masterpiece, 1 September 2003

Author: bmacv from Western New York

Bringing Theodore Dreiser's sprawling novel An American Tragedy to the screen must have been a daunting task, made harder by the constraints Paramount imposed on director George Stevens. The studio had lost big on a version made 20 years earlier, under Josef von Sternberg, and had little faith in a remake. So, hobbled by a tight budget, Stevens scaled back his ambitious plans but delivered, perhaps even to his own surprise, a superbly crafted and and powerfully sustained work of movie art.

He was lucky that Paramount, edgy about the story, gave him a cast that would guarantee not only good box office but solid performances as well. Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth Taylor and Shelly Winters take the principal roles, with, in the last third of the movie, extra oomph courtesy of Raymond Burr (in a role that may have nabbed him the Perry Mason franchise).

The jaws of the vise Clift finds himself squeezed into are class and sex. Barely educated, raised by stern members of a religious sect, he luckily (or not) happens to be the shirt-tail nephew of a prosperous entrepreneur who casually offers him work in his factory. Awkward and lonesome, Clift escapes the drudgery of his job by taking up with a mousy co-worker (Winters, toned way down from her platinum-bombshell image at the time). But his nose-to-the-grindstone ways attract the attention of his uncle, who rewards him with a promotion and an invitation up to the manor.

There he meets Taylor and launches an obsession about her, reinforced by a neon sign visible from his window that blazes her surname through his restless nights (she's another child of an industrial fortune, raised in wealth and privilege). Somehow, she falls for him – and, need it be added, he for her – despite his coming from the wrong side of the tracks (she hasn't the faintest notion that for people like him, life may not be the blithe affair it is for her).

Only one inconvenient fact keeps Clift from taking his rightful place in the sun: He's left Winters pregnant. The two worlds he occupies are destined to collide, and crash they do when Winters phones him, in the midst of a Hawaiian-themed luau at Taylor's summer place on the lake, to issue her ultimatum: Marry her or she'll spill their sordid secret. He leaves abruptly to meet Winters, desperately trying to assemble the plan which will seal three fates.

Stevens sustains an overwhelming, ominous momentum, unbroken by even a hint of levity (not even a single bit player is allowed to lapse into shtik). Languorous dissolves and superimposed images heighten the sense of inevitability as each scene, each event glides seamlessly into the next.

Maybe he wasn't able to pile on the exhaustive social commentary that bulked up Dreiser's novel, but everywhere there's sharp detail that he adroitly leaves to be noticed. When Clift shows up hours late at his intimate birthday party in Winter's cramped room, with the tiny table pushed up against her marble washstand, the ice cream has warmed to lumpy syrup (a self-homage to a similar scene in Steven's Alice Adams?). With an island combo playing merrily on, Clift sports a lei and eats pineapple out of its shell when Winters calls to break the spell – and this South-Seas reverie is offered up not as Veblenesque excess, but merely as the way Taylor's crowd spend their days and evenings and nights in an endless round of heedless gaiety.

The apex of the film's crescendo is handled with tight, quiet assurance – the reckoning in a rowboat upon a deserted lake. Dusk gathers among the pines like fog, the loons call back and forth, and the rippling waves reflect a demented flash into Clift's eye as he wrestles with his conscience. Winters natters nervously about the dreary life they'll spend together while his head swims with luminous visions of Taylor. Then, destiny catches.... Romantic but unsentimental, serious but without pretension, gripping without stooping to the manipulative, A Place in the Sun ranks as a masterpiece of American cinema.

---

37 out of 62 people found the following comment useful :-
Clift, Taylor, Stevens and a spellbinding American tragedy, 28 February 2007

Author: M. J Arocena from New Zealand

Time does extraordinary things with greatness. If nothing else it confirms it. "A Place in the Sun" is a remarkable example of that theory. I rushed to buy a DVD after watching a BBC documentary on ELizabeth Taylor to celebrate her 75th birthday! In "A Place on the Sun" an Elizabeth Taylor barely out of her teens is paired with Montgomery Clift. She had been raised at MGM and groomed for movie stardom from day one. He was a method actor, complex, introspective and their coupling produced something that I'm tempted to call, unrepeatable. The actors own personal stories, their friendship, mutual love and respect made it possible for their communion to be so transcendental. To make things even more perfect, the film seems a love letter from director George Stevens to his stars and vice versa. Look at the opening credits and tell me if you've ever seen a more startling introduction to a character/star. The story of doomed love and descend into darkness is, without question, one of the best ever made.

---

30 out of 50 people found the following comment useful :-
As a Film, This is Haunting, Tragic Romanticism..., 4 April 1999

Author: Donald J. Lamb from Philadelphia, PA

George Stevens' A PLACE IN THE SUN is a poetic film, filled with tender moments, sadness, and pending doom. Having not read the book, I had the pleasure of seeing the material for the first time, which is preferable if you see a film based on a "classic" novel. Montgomery Clift is his usual mysterious self as he has a scandalous relationship with the homely Shelly Winters and falls instantly in love with a spellbindingly beautiful Liz Taylor, who was only 19 when the picture was made. She glows with energy and a sense of optimism about life, a stark contrast to Clift, whom Taylor has also fallen for. Rumor has it they had an actual affair while making the movie. This is not for all tastes, for it is slow, and Clift is not all that appealing. The idea of dropping a lesser life (with Winters) and pursuing the good life with Taylor is what makes it work and the lengths to which Clift will go are staggering.

George Stevens has a gift for "painting" a movie on-screen. Just see GIANT, also with Taylor, or SHANE, the other two parts of his "American Trilogy". The scenes on the lake and the way the mood of the movie is painted is quite simply amazing. He also uses slow dissolves that leave a ghostly image on-screen between scenes. This all adds to the atmospheric touch of tragedy that will ensue. Poor Shelly Winters. She always gets a raw deal in films. There are times when you almost sympathize with Clift. Imagine living the life of a socialite with the girl of your dreams and a good job with your family. A life with Winters would be dismal according to Clift and us. What's right is right, however. An unnecessary court room saga closes the picture to ensure the viewer's sense of justice. This must've been pretty controversial stuff back in the early-50's

A PLACE IN THE SUN truly is an American tragedy, a portrait of young lives gone wrong with post-WWII optimism as a backdrop. Clift and Taylor shine together, and provide film fans with a romance never to be forgotten. The finale is emotionally draining during Taylor's expression of undying love. Unfortunately, Clift cannot have it all. A beautiful piece of classical Hollywood film-making with a mix of method acting (Clift) and a love story we wish could work.

RATING: 8 of 10

---

11 out of 14 people found the following comment useful :-
Stevens took a sensitivity that hadn't been used since "Jane Eyre.", 31 January 2009

Author: ironside (robertfrangie@hotmail.com) from Mexico

This is a movie about George Eastman (Clift), a young, gentle laborer without social standing who longs for the better things in life…He is swept off his feet after a chance encounter with wealth, success and upper-class snobbery…

George is introduced to a stunning socialite Angela Vickers (Liz Taylor—never so beautiful) full of sensual delight and threatened by an unattractive factory girl (Alice) he's already made pregnant… Angela and George fall deeply in love, but Alice Tripp (Winters) presses and chases George until he agrees to marry her… He has a desperate decision, but hesitates… Finding they can't get married over the Labor Day weekend, George takes Alice boating…

Shelley Winters was extraordinary as the distressed co-worker… She made the wronged employee an understandable reaction to human dimensions… As she sits in the rowboat, unconsciously torturing Clift with her thoughts of their future together, Winters is both pathetic and annoying—a special candidate to get rid of…

The impact of the film depends absolutely on a moral climate that has now less impact on our society… Pre-marital sex is no longer disapproved and abortions are easier to obtain… But the film's power resided in its exceptionally convincing depiction of the points and questions created by these situations…

"A Place in the Sun" was nominated for nine Academy Awards, and won six…

---

12 out of 16 people found the following comment useful :-
Let's hear it for William C. Mellor, 18 October 2004
Author: nick-368 from Caversham, England

Isn't IMDb great? As well as reading the detailed and thoughtful criticisms from contributors about a film like this, you can browse through all sorts of IMDb trivia, discovering interesting stuff all the time. My latest favourite activity on the site is checking out films that won the Academy Award for Best Cinematography. Needless to say A Place in the Sun won this award for William C. Mellor. Much has already been said of the beauty and precision of the images. I'd like to add a comment about one shot where Clift is coerced into a speedboat ride with Taylor and her rich pals. The static camera is on the jetty with a portable radio in close-up. The speedboat pulling away and doing a spin in the bay occupies our middle vision, while hills and boats lie in the distance. All of them are in wonderful pin-sharp deep focus, a skill that seems all but lost in today's productions. The radio announces the discovery of the girl's body while the boat speeds past, completing the dramatic reason for the shot.

A funny thing I've noticed about these great cinematographers is they all seemed to live a good long life, usually working right up the end of their lives. I don't know why, I just thought I'd mention it!

---

7 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
A Place in Movie History, 2 January 2006

Author: edwagreen from United States

Standout film which was a remake of An American Tragedy with the late Sylvia Sidney.

The film was remade in 1951 with Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth Taylor and Shelley Winters.

The culture of rich vs. poor is explored in this film. Lonely drifter Clift meets Ms. Winters first and then in a chance meeting, meets the wealthy Ms. Taylor. Her wealth and position in society is what most affects Clift.

Eager to leave Shelley, he soon discovers that she is pregnant. This part, as the impoverished pregnant girl with nowhere to go, was the best part and performance by Miss Winters. We feel for her as she tries to maintain a grip on the Clift character. She brings to the part a nervousness rarely seen in motion pictures. Had she been nominated for best supporting actress, she would have possessed 3 Oscars in that category. Instead, she was nominated for lead actress and lost to Vivien Leigh in A Streetcar Named Desire.

Clift is perfect as the drifter;he was Oscar nominated for it. His scenes in the court, where he maintains that the drowning of Miss Winters was an accident, are real and leave a vivid reminder in the minds of the viewers.

The film also marked a breakout performance for Miss Taylor. Up until then, possibly with the exception of 1949's Elephant Walk, her roles were mostly childish in non-dramatic films.

The viewer is put in the moral dilemma of whether or not Clift made an attempt to save the drowning Ms. Winters. Capital punishment becomes a question as always.

Anne Revere is effective in an all too brief role as Clift's bible-reading mother.

All emotional stops are put out in the final scene when Taylor visits a condemned Clift in prison.

****. A superb production.

---

28 out of 51 people found the following comment useful :-
The Truth Has A Way Of Sneaking Up On You, 30 November 2005

Author: ccthemovieman-1 from Lockport, NY, United States

This 1950s melodrama was an interesting, involving story. It's part film-noir, too, which I liked. I say that because the last third of the film featured an expectation of some dreaded act about to be committed, giving it a film noir feel.

One thing for sure, whatever you label the movie: it's well-acted, well-directed and well-photographed. Regarding the latter, this really looks good on DVD. No surprise it's directed well since George Stevens was the director. His resume speaks for itself.

Obviously Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor are the "big names" in this film, but I found Shelly Winters and the character she played to be the most intriguing. She wasn't really appealing yet one could certainly identify with her feelings of insecurity with Taylor as her competition. "Liz" was in in her prime, looks-wise, with an absolutely classic face.

Anyway, watching the character studies of the antsy Winters and the troublesome Clift were interesting. Clift, as is the case with most of us, causes his own problems and things slowly unravel for him. The story is another example of what can happen when one tries to cover up the truth. It comes back to bite you, big-time!

I really found it refreshing, however, to see Clift's attitude at the end. It's the exact opposite of what you hear today. He actually takes responsibility for his actions.

---

34 out of 63 people found the following comment useful :-
Read the book first?, 30 May 1999

Author: Lawrence Davis (ldavis@shockware.com) from Medicine Hat, Alberta

To Hell with the book! That's the old cliche about ANY movie...if you've read the author's version and have your own mind's eye scenario firmly in place, almost NO movie will ever compete. However, movies are made to bring the mass audience to a (sometimes) great literary work that would otherwise be relegated to obscurity. "Loved the book...hated the movie...yadda, yadda, yadda". In any case, George Stevens' adaptation of this novel is a magnificent piece of filmmaking. The sheer "beauty" of Clift and Taylor in their prime, doomed to an unachievable fruition of their romance due to the difference in "class" and Clift's apparently deliberate failure to save the life of his frumpy little girlfriend (Shelley Winters in a thankless role)is heartwrenching.....star-crossed lovers in the Romeo and Juliet vein. The sub-title of the book "An American Tragedy" is certainly appropriate. I agree the movie takes a rather LONG time to get to it's denoument, and Raymond Burr is WAY over the top as the film-ending prosecutor. However, you will NEVER see two young actors as tragic and beautiful as Montgomery and Elizabeth...when she says "Tell mamma...tell momma all" and Monty clutches her towards him and almost brutally clamps a big kiss while the camera circles...oh my!! Of course, the REAL tragedy was that, off screen, Elizabeth was MAD for Monty and was even prepared to put up with his bisexuality. Wouldn't they have made a great looking couple at film openings, the Oscars, etc.? But I digress...the stark black and white photography, great background music and fabulous acting (particularly by the stage-trained and film-cautious Monty in a fish-out-of-water role)adds up to a memorable viewing experience. If this one doesn't tear your heart out, you HAVE no heart!!!

---

5 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
The very best, 30 December 2005

Author: robertgiannola from United States

...Had more impact on this then 12 year old than any motion picture I have seen in my 66 years. To see Monty's character blow his life with what was the most precious and knockout gorgeous female in history, had to be the most devastating moment in the history of movies. I have yet to see a movie moment as stark as that one in his jail cell. Monty was born for the part and Liz was the epitome of every man's dreams. Called the Greatest Movie of all time by the World Champion Movie Goer, George Raborn, he wasn't far from the truth....at least for me. George Stevens outdid himself in casting with Shelley Winters....the ideal person for the sad and often clinging girlfriend of Monty. Anyway, I still refer to the movie as my very favorite ever.

---

7 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
In the eddies and wakes of a boat on Big Moose Lake, 8 June 2005

Author: theowinthrop from United States

In 1906 there resided in upstate New York a young man named Chester Gillette. Mr. Gillette was good looking and ambitious, and hoped to better his social and financial situation by family connections and a socially advantageous marriage to a wealthy young woman. But Gillette had been dating Grace Brown, a farmer's daughter, and Brown found out she was pregnant. She insisted that Gillette marry her, or she would reveal what he did to her. Gillette arranged for her to meet him at a resort at Big Moose Lake in the Adirondacks, but they were to go there separately, and he made sure they were not seen together too much. Actually they were seen many times together - like many schemers Gillette thought he had accomplished his intentions but actually had failed to do so.

He took Grace out on a boat, supposedly to enjoy the quiet pleasures of the lake. Something occurred in that boat - we will never know for certain. The majority of us feel certain that Chester hit Grace with either an oar or a tennis racket, knocking her unconscious into the water, so that she drowned. However, he always maintained she hit her head after upsetting the boat, on the overturned boat. We just don't know. Chester's behavior after the accident was that of a skulking coward, not revealing himself to the authorities or seeking assistance, but trying to get back to his room at a local hotel to get his luggage. He was arrested within a few days, and a trial took place that became nationally prominent. At the end of the trial, Chester Gillette was convicted of first degree murder. After an appeal failed, Chester was electrocuted in 1908.

Roughly seventeen years later, Theodore Dreiser was considering his next literary project. Dreiser's social views were left of center, and he wanted to write a novel that tore open the materialist center of American social values. It was to be based on a famous homicide case that was based on misguided attempts at social advancement. Dreiser looked at several cases (another one was a notorious 1911 case, the murder of Avis Linnell in Massachusetts, by Reverend Charles Richeson - the Reverend poisoned Miss Linnell who stood in his way to an advantageous marriage). Dreiser decided the story of Chester Gillette fit the bill. It was to tell (in fictional form, of course) the background of the case, the social pressures that lead to the main event, and the trial of the hero as well as his condemnation and execution. Changing the name of the hero to Clyde Griffiths (note the same initials as Chester's), published the novel as an attack on the misguided social clawing and status seeking in our capitalist society. As such it was entitled "An American Tragedy".

The novel was a success (perhaps Dreiser's masterpiece). He helped dramatize it in the late 1920s, and in 1931 it was filmed for the first time as by Joseph Von Sternberg. But much was cut out of that version, and Dreiser was so upset he sued Paramount and Von Sternberg (and lost the case). That film version, with Phillips Holmes as Clyde, and Sylvia Sidney as the doomed girl, was actually quite good on its own merits.

In 1947 Dreiser died. In 1951 George Stevens assembled the production staff and cast, including Monty Cliff, Shelley Winters, Elizabeth Taylor, Raymond Burr, Fred Clark, and Keefe Brazzell. It is a wonderfully rich and good film, showing the shocking underside of the American dream (just as Dreiser would have hoped). The central figure is no longer Clyde Griffiths but George Eastman, but Monty Cliff shows how a basically hard working young man is destroyed pursuing his dream of success. And again, the film properly leaves the central issue - did Chester/Clyde/George kill his girlfriend, and try to make it look like an accident, or did he change his mind, but there was an accident, or did he panic when in the water, and fail to save her. Was it a moral crime rather than a factual one?

Raymond Burr's performance, in the part of the local district attorney, is one of the two movie roles (the other is Lars Thorwald in REAR WINDOW) that people recall if not thinking of his great television career. As the District Attorney, Burr (usually typecast as villains) actually is a heavy, but one with a moral mission. He is certain that this was murder, pure and simple, and he is going to avenge poor Shelley Winters. His performance when cross examining Cliff is a marvel, particularly the moment he bares down on the spot Winters was sitting at with an oar and smashes it. It has been called over the top, but it is deservedly over the top. And I suspect it was also important for Burr's future career as well. It was a great way for him to demonstrate his strength appearing as a courtroom gladiator. I am certain that when casting for the Perry Mason series occurred a few years later, the producers recalled what a splendid job Burr did here when considering hiring him. The rest was television history.

---

---

Page 1 of 11:

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11]

Add another comment

---

Related Links

Plot summary	Amazon.com summary	Ratings
Awards	Newsgroup reviews	External reviews
Plot keywords	Main details	Your user comments
Your vote history