Splendor in the Grass (1961)

Director:

Elia Kazan

Writer:

William Inge (writer)

Release Date:

10 October 1961 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

A LOVE STORY UNLIKE ANY OTHERS !!

Plot:

A fragile Kansas girl's unrequited and forbidden love for a handsome young man from the town's most powerful family drives her to heartbreak and madness.

Plot Keywords:

Kansas | Stock Market Crash | 1920s | High School | Forbidden Love

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Natalie Wood	...	Wilma Dean 'Deanie' Loomis
Warren Beatty	...	Bud Stamper
Pat Hingle	...	Ace Stamper
Audrey Christie	...	Mrs. Loomis
Barbara Loden	...	Ginny Stamper
Zohra Lampert	...	Angelina
Fred Stewart	...	Del Loomis
Joanna Roos	...	Mrs. Stamper
John McGovern	...	Doc Smiley
Jan Norris	...	Juanita Howard
Martine Bartlett	...	Miss Metcalf
Gary Lockwood	...	Toots
Sandy Dennis	...	Kay
Crystal Field	...	Hazel
Marla Adams	...	June

Also Known As:

Splendour in the Grass (UK)

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (PCA #19453) | Canada:PG

Filming Locations:

4144 Victory Boulevard, Staten Island, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

NBI Productions

Trivia:

Incredibly - by today's standards - a Cedar Rapids, Iowa (USA) newspaper ad for this film says "No one under 16 will be admitted unless accompanied by an adult".

Goofs:

Continuity: At the film's climax, when Hazel asks Deanie if she still loves Bud, you can see to the right of the frame that Deanie is wearing her hat. However, when it cuts immediately to a close-up of Deanie, she is not wearing the hat.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Wilma Dean: Bud...
Bud: Deanie, please...
Wilma Dean: Bud, I'm afraid. Oh, Bud... don't, Bud.
Bud: Deanie...
Wilma Dean: No... we mustn't, Bud... no... no...
[he gets out of the car]
Wilma Dean: Bud, don't be mad.
Bud: I better take you home.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Splendor in the Ass (1989) (V)

Splendor all around!

This is a beautiful and powerful film - flawlessly acted, directed and written. It is easily the best of the sexual awakening movies that were so popular in the late fifties, early sixties. And why wouldn't it be - with Kazan at the helm and an original screenplay by William Inge.

The film begins with a similar theme to "Rebel Without a Cause" - that is why won't parents treat their children like human beings and really help them come to terms with becoming adults? But halfway through Inge does a clever turn-around and allows the kids to discover that their parents are human beings too, with all the weaknesses and frailties that go with being human. At the same time Inge portrays the coming of age of America as the joy of the roaring twenties moves into the gloom of the Depression.

The story is about how prejudice and blind morality destroys a great love - sex shouldn't be such a huge issue between two people who love each other, but the enormous pressures from outside to either do it or refrain from doing it cause confusion, pain and hurt. Who will ever forget Natalie Wood leaping naked from a bath screaming at her mother that she is not "spoiled"? Wood gives the performance of her life here, convincingly portraying adolescent love, a nervous breakdown, and the blossoming into woman-hood. Beatty too is splendid as the confused Bud. And both are so achingly beautiful!

The supporting cast is superb down to the smallest role. Barbara Loden is particularly memorable as Beatty's wild flapper sister, but Pat Hingle as his father, and Audrey Christie and Fred Stewart as Wood's parents are also unforgettable.

This is a resonant film that I believe will be more and more appreciated with the passing of time.