the audience applauded

it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

When I first saw this film back in the day, I thought it was a proper movie - it seemed bigger, bolder and more beautiful than real life; and it had tidier outcomes.Set in on island off the coast of Maine, Molly Jorgenson (Sandra Dee), the daughter of Ken Jorgenson (Richard Egan), falls for Johnny Hunter (Troy Donahue), the son of Sylvia Hunter (Dorothy Maguire), reflecting the teenage love affair their parents had before marrying different people.As feelings between Molly and Johnny grow, Ken and Sylvia rekindle their romance. But the path to true love is rockier than the rugged coast of the island. Social position, the disillusionment of the children over their parent's affair and pressure from all directions leads to confrontation and rash decisions.Director Delmer Daves was never considered in the same league as Huston, Ford or Wyler, but he made some movies I like - "Demetrius and The Gladiators" is still high on my list of guilty pleasures. Here, he entered Douglas Sirk territory and came up with a movie that gives "Imitation of Life" a run for its money.Seeing it recently, I was surprised at the grittiness of the script. When Bart Hunter (Arthur Kennedy) asks Helen Jorgenson (Constance Ford) if she likes to swim in the nude, you know this film must have tested the old Hollywood Production Code. Sex is high on the agenda, much of it centred on whether Molly and Johnny are doing it.The cast is full of beautiful people in a beautiful landscape. Everyone seems right. Sandra Dee and Troy Donahue are a blonde Romeo and Juliet, and experience a range of emotions that may have even blunted the Bard's quill.Dorothy McGuire and Richard Egan are the embodiment of grown-ups.Dorothy McGuire often played mothers where she had to deal with teenage angst, and the angst is off the Richter scale in this movie. Richard Egan was a powerful screen presence. One of his best scenes is in "A Summer Place" when his character tries to reconcile with his daughter.Max Steiner gave the film a memorable score. The theme he came up with was played to death over the years, but it was a fresh surprise when it first appeared - it still sounds great.All the principals are long gone now. The film represented personal and social attitudes that were changing fast in the late 50's. It's a movie of its time and place, but its heartfelt performances and sheer quality still reach out and grab you.

I just watched an old Perry Mason ans was pleasantly surprised to see Constance Ford. So, I looked her up and thought I'd see the reviews for A Summer Place.I was in the 8th grade when it first played. Looking back, those teen angst movies with sex as the conflict were laughable back then. Even as an 8th grader, they seemed conservative compared to what us kids talked about at the time which was much racier.There were movies like Susan Slade, Parrish, etc. that are cringe inducing but so entertaining for their dated takes on young love and young sex.Now, Constance Ford is irresistible; a poor man's Joan Crawford during her Queen Bee and Harriet Craig years. She could be so scary just by giving a look of disdain. I wish I could have met her to see what she was really like because she had that tough, intolerant schtick down and half the time seemed like she was having hot flashes to boot. Even in black and white, it looked like her face would get flushed when she was losing her temper. But, she could steal a scene so effortlessly even if she didn't say a word.I don't know what movie or TV show I saw Ford in where she was in a vicious argument with another woman or young girl where she took a fireplace poker and swung it and stuck it in the mantel. She was good. Scarier than Dirty Harry.Poor Troy Donahue couldn't act to save his life. He was a male bimbo. I had a crush on Sandra Dee even though she could be really annoying at times but she had her good moments.Dorothy McGuire was quite a beauty and a good actress but low key and not showy.All in all, a fun and entertaining movie with a window to a different time is some of our lives. I know it was a drama but, really, it still has me grinning throughout. And, that's good.I checked spoiler just in case Ford swinging a fireplace poker was from this movie. I can't recall for sure. She probably could have done that in many of her films with the characters she played.

I was 54 years late, but I finally got around to watching this well-known soap opera. Released in 1959, the story has to do with a couple (Arthur Kennedy and Dorothy McGuire) who own a vacation inn off the coast of Maine. It's a beautiful old mansion but they're barely above poverty and Kennedy's a sad alcoholic. That's when an affluent couple visits for the summer (Richard Egan and Constance Ford). Egan was a lifeguard on the island when he was a teen and knows the couple from his youth. He and McGuire dated back then and Egan wants to reignite the flame, likely because his wife is utterly frigid. On top of this, both couples have teens (Troy Donahue and Sandra Dee) and they strike up a secret romance as well. There are drastic consequences to these liaisons.What separates this film from a television soap opera is the location shooting. I should point out, however, that it was shot on the coast of California, not Maine (Pacific Grove and Carmel-by-the-Sea)."A Summer Place" is a worthwhile film because, watching it, is like going back in time where mores were more reserved and much less hedonistic. A girl wasn't expected to have sex until she married and, if she did, it was scandalous. It was the same thing with adultery, which still is scandalous, but even more so back then. It's also interesting to see how people dressed while lounging around the house, all dressed-up. Despite the differing mores, people are still human and face the same human needs and temptations that people do in any time period.The social dynamics are also interesting: It's wrong for Richard and Dorothy to commit adultery, but who can blame them in the face of Constance' cold legalism and Arthur's pathetic alcoholism? Constance seethingly condemns Dorothy as a monstrous adulterous, but she's oblivious to her own loveless arrogance. Which is the greater transgression? Would Richard have strayed in the first place if Constance wasn't such an impassive ice queen? And without Richard's advances Dorothy would've never been tempted to cheat on Arthur. O what a tangled web we weave.The first half is great for the reasons cited above, including the gorgeous locations, but the second half moves away from the island and focuses on the relationship of Donahue and Dee, which simply isn't as interesting as the adult entanglements. Thankfully, the story picks up in the final act and the core message rings loud and clear: love conquers all (and I'm not talking' bout mere physical lust).FINAL WORD: The film runs 130 minutes and is overlong by about 10-20 minutes, but it's an interesting period piece with some fascinating gems to extract, not to mention the beautiful coastal locations.GRADE: B

as a movie by most standards it's a 6 or 7; plusses are it's back when they shot on the rocks instead of fake rocks, went there, did that- like the first few 007 movies- a feature lost on many watchers today; but mainly it's one of the last defenders of the 40s and 50s- holding hands, a kiss: oh my god, you know what that can lead to; easy enough to make fun of it today, on the other hand the opposite family parents were screwing each other night after night; so it becomes the wonderful cliff of the late 50's: sex everywhere but just tucked under the blue blazer and white pants; this, and peyton place and a few others but no holding back the 60's; still worth a watch as a reasonably literate soap opera with a few moments of very good writing (he loves her too much to speak), and the curious catchall- postponing, arranging, suffering etc because of the children- even though the children aren't exactly tots