Picnic : Restored
|
List Price: Our Price: $8.64 You Save: $6.31 (42%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $5.36 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Canada
Movie Reviews of Picnic : Restored
Movie Review: Near-perfection of Broadway adapted to cinema?
Summary: 5 Stars
The movie rates 5 stars; this DVD rates 3.
Picnic is a movie I didn't merely watch; I experienced it from age 6 forward. At Waikiki Beach, restaurant jukeboxes on beach-directed speakers played "Moonglow" incessantly on summer afternoons. That sweet music was ingrained in my psyche. Older cousins told me Picnic was about the best date movie ever made.
Flash forward to 1962, when Picnic was late-night movie fare on TV. I finally saw the fabled movie. Kim Novak was even more radiant than anticipated.
That pretty-in-pink moment at Neewollah is a seminal moment of movie history - what a vision of feminine pulchritude.
Casting of other characters was near-flawless. OK, Bill Holden was a bit too old to play a twenty-something college dropout, but he turned in a compelling performance as the tortured dreamer, Hal. Cliff Robertson played the precise balance of a reluctantly tolerant college buddy versus rightfully scornful moralist of man-child, Hal, who had destroyed his dream of a future with Madge. Bill Holden, Betty Field, Verna Felton, Arthur O'Connor, Roz Russell, and an exceptional Susan Strassberg are gone now, but in Picnic, they live on forever.
Susan Strassberg is the campus queen's kid sister you wish you met in high school. Millie is a misfit, big city girl stuck in a small town. Verna Felton is the neighbor you wish you had living on your block. Rosalind Russell fears her biological clock is in its final throes, seeing hapless, happy-go-lucky Arthur O'Connell as her final chance at companionship.
There is plenty of charm in the depiction of small-town Mid-America, and you can't believe that the tortured conflicts of the characters could possibly take place there.
The closing scene has Madge (Novak) on a bus, ostensibly to rendezvous with Hal, who has hopped a freight train. The highway parallels the train tracks, and the bus slowly pulls behind a speeding train. Most viewers would assume a happy ending.
However, do Madge and Hal find happiness? Betty Field, the mother, married a ne'er-do-well like Hal, and she has felt the pain of abandonment. She is left with high-schooler, Millie, a devious handful. Finally, does Arthur O'Connell commit to Rosalind Russell?
These are some points to ponder as the credits roll. Keep your fingers crossed that a "proper" DVD finally gets pressed, one that respects widescreen movies. I had to catch Picnic at a film festival for the theatrical widescreen version. Don't miss it.
Strains of Moonglow are playing on my computer as I write this review. It will probably be played at my funeral. It's truly amazing how some things stick in a six-year old's mind.
Movie Review: Picnic film, beautiful romantic film
Summary: 5 Stars
I love this movie, it's one of my favorites. I am a fan of William Holden. He was handsome, charismatic, a great actor. Known for his popular films, such as World of Suzie Wong, Love is a many splendored thing, Sabrina, Bridge on the river kwai, and others. I loved him in this movie as Hal the drifter, who catches a freight to Kansas to see an old college friend of his, whose father owns the grain mill in town. Hal ends up falling in love with Madge, his college friend's girlfriend, which breaks up the friendship. I think the best part of the movie is when Hal and Madge dance to "Moonglow" at the picnic, and it seems like that is the moment when they first fall in love. Hal has to run out of town and catch a freight train again, because his ex-friend is furious, because he suspects that Madge and Hal have fallen for each other. Madge's mom who doesn't believe in marrying for love, since the man she loved, Madge's father, left them after she had Madge's sister. She wants Madge to marry Hal's friend, because the friend is a rich boy, and member of the country club. She wants Madge to be treated like a queen, and live the good life. She wants Madge to always be adored by everyone for her looks. Madge is the prettiest girl at the picnic and wins the beauty contest there. Madge just wants to be loved for who she is, not for the way she looks, and of course Hal is attracted to her looks at first, but loves her for who she is. In reality though, it isn't realistic usually for people to fall deeply in love instantly. But if you love romance, Bill Holden, a beautifully made film, good acting, and a good cast, you will love "Picnic." And if you love the song "Moonglow", you will definitely enjoy watching William Holden and Kim Novak dancing together to it. The only question is will Hal and Madge end up together? Will she marry Hal's rich ex-friend? Will she go with Hal or follow him out of town to be with him, "the man she loves", or will she stay and make her mother happy? You will find the answer of course, if you buy "Picnic." I think this is a movie one will not regret purchasing, as long as you love old romantic films, William Holden, and of course, "Moonglow." This truly is one of my very favorite films. Also I wrote a review on Marie Antoinette, which I also love. I love most of William Holden's films, such as Love is a many splendored thing, World of Suzie Wong, and Sabrina. So check out these other films, if you haven't seen them already, I don't think you will be disappointed. I believe you will love them as I do, and they will be your top favorite films too!Movie Review: Don't pass this one up!
Summary: 5 Stars
This wonderful movie satisfies on many levels. It calls us back to a simpler time in our minds. It is Americana. It actually is a very strong love story, almost steamy at times (at least for it's day) - believable yet still cinematic. It is an excellent character study. It is funny, and it is sad. It is a movie THE WHOLE family can watch and enjoy, which these days is saying a lot. Although it is easy to see that "Picnic" was derived from a play, this point does not detract - in fact it enhances the film.The casting is excellent. Rosalind Russell as the spinstery school teacher is flawless, and her hen-pecked boyfriend (Arthur O'Connell) is great too. As another reviewer noted, Verna Felton, who plays "Mrs. Potts", allows us to put everything into a peaceful perspective......even the "chaos" that ultimately ensues is a normal part of life, as her stable persona continually demonstrates. Cliff Robertson is fine as Alan Benson - he does not allow his role to overtake that of Holden and Novak....a lesser-known actor may have worked better for his role.
Holden (and I must admit to being a huge William Holden fan) is superb. Just enough cockiness and false-bravado contrasting with a genuine naiveté of the real world around him (he's "experienced" with football and women, inexperienced with just about everything else). So many of his scenes are gems - his first confrontation with "Bomber", his "women" stories to Alan, and my personal favorite, the scene where he and Millie (his "unofficial date" for the picnic) are driving to the fairgrounds. After singing a rendition of "Old McDonald" together, Holden turns to Millie and says "Hey kid, here's one my old man taught me". Then, after a pause (and realizing he is with a 15 year old girl), Holden shakes his head and instead starts up another verse of "Old McDonald". Priceless!!
If the movie has any "problems" at all, they are minor. Susan Strasberg ("Millie"), who is supposedly Kim Novak's bookwormy, unattractive sister, is anything but unattractive. It will take more than a pair of pointy horn-rimmed glasses to put her out of Madge's league! And there is something a little "stand-offish" about Novak's performance at times, although I have never been quite able to identify what it is.
But this movie is 5 stars all the way. Sit back and enjoy a movie for the ages, when actors could still act and a great and enjoyable story was still told. If you need violence or vivid sexual imagery to hold your attention, don't bother. Otherwise, you may love this film!
Movie Review: "I gotta get somewhere in this world. I just gotta..."
Summary: 5 Stars
Hal Carter is a middle-aged drifter jumping freight trains through middle America. He hops off in a small Kansas town and looks up his old college buddy, Alan Benson.Hal finds out that Hal's father owns the grainery; the richest business in town. Alan also controls Madge Owens, a buxom 20-year-old who finds Hal attractive. Hal is invited to the local Labor Day picnic. Bread-belt Americans lunch and frolic. Two babies sit in a hamster. One laughs. One crys. Suddenly, both start to cry. You watch. You laugh. It's real. Hal meets the family group, including the spinster school-teacher. A bottle gets passed around, and the schoolmarm wises up to Hal. She identifies his failed careers; she attacks his dis-jointed life-style. Stunned and hurt, Hal retreats to the nearby town river, ready to jump another freight car; ready to escape again. But pretty young Madge hasn't quite seen enough of the dashing stranger from out of town....Joshua Logan began acting on Broadway in the 1930's, advancing to directing through the 40's and 50's with real success.In 1955, Columbia Pictures tapped him to direct William Inge's hit New York play, "Picnic". The film would gross over 6 million dollars,a big pay-day for those times. Logan's "Picnic" is a tantilizing, warm visit to 1950's America, blessed with style and class.Award winning William Holden heads the cast, aided by a young Cliff Robertson, Arthur O'Connell, Kim Novak, Rosalind Russell, and a teen-age Susan Strasberg. Future star Nick Adams has a small role. Shot on location in glorious Technicolor, "Picnic" offers no fancy special-effects, no nude scenes and no CGI. It delivers character development, genuine sentiment and excellent direction. Joshua Logan would go on to direct "South Pacific", "Sayonara"and under-rated "Camelot". This beautiful new DVD is nearly flawless. Some pixelation in the river-bank sequence is evident. Some critics say William Holden was too old for the lead in "Picnic", but at age 37, he was just hitting his prime. Some say "Picnic" is too old-fashioned. But don't they know. Classics never do go out of style....Movie Review: Steamy Pulitzer Prize Play comes to WideScreen DVD !!
Summary: 5 Stars
Columbia Pictures brings William Inges steamy romantic 1955 Pulitzer Prize Winning Play to the big screen starring Academy Award Winner William Holden and Kim Novak.This Cinemascope Technicolor classic love triangle is intense and the on screen chemistry between Holden & Novak seems genuine.
This DVD provides us with a Standard (4:3 tv) Format Side A and an Anamorphic WideScreen (automatically adjusts to your tv size including 16:9 HDTV) on Side B.
Summary: An ALL-STAR cast; William Holden, Kim Novak, Cliff Robertson, Susan Strasburg (very young & from the play), & Rosalind Russell brings this steamy September "PICNIC" to life.
(also a very young Nick Adams makes an appearance). A drifter (Holden) arrives by freight train in a small Kansas town seeking his wealthy college buddy (Robertson). Holdens rugged good looks & mannerisms drives all the towns women wild. He even steals his buddys girl (Novak) the newly elected PICNIC carnival queen. In a very short time he brings out all those hidden romantic fantasies & is driven out of town. Not before he captures the heart of Novak. This is a very classic 1950's Hollywood romance story. The song "Theme from PICNIC" is also a classic tune. Stronge performances by Holden, Novak, Russell (spinster school teacher) & Strasburg (Novaks young sister).
Special Features include: Photo Montage (outstanding 6 minute black/white slide show montage with background music), Vintage Advertising, Talent Files & Trailers.
This is a fine film the cast is outstanding. Enjoy.