Rating:  -
Theodore Dreiser has never been one of my favorite writers, and his novel AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY, although rooted in fact, always felt too pat and mechanical, but at least the original never stacked the deck as badly as this lumbering, self-important film version does.
The heartbreak of the original is that the factory girl that the main character kills in an attempt to achieve his social ambitions is at least as charming, perhaps more so, than the rich girl he covets as his stepping stone to The Good Life. And in Joseph von Sternberg's early 30's film of the book, that girl was played by the radiant Sylvia Sydney. The theorem of the story, of course, is that having to be married to her while only making a factory worker's salary would be such a grind and a misery that the pair would be miserable and hate one another in very short order. Well, maybe the greedy, ambitious quisling at the center of Dreiser's novel, but most men with any common sense would rather spend life in a cold-water walk-up with Sylvia Sydney than life in a mansion with any real-life heiress . . .
And the same would probably be true if Shelley Winters were allowed to be her actual, ebulliant self in the same role. But George Stevens, who directed this version, wanted a shrill, drab harpie who would have driven men away even if she had just inherited several million dollars. The rich girl, on the other hand, is played by Elizabeth Taylor at her loveliest and most luminous. This is not a fair fight.
And the film cheats in other ways--the protagonist is now played by Montgomery Clift at the height of his soulful handsomeness, and although he could have played his character as cold, weak, and self-absorbed (if you doubt this, check out his performance as Morris Townsend in THE HEIRESS, where he brings the chill of Henry James' novel WASHINGTON SQUARE to the tidied-up proceedings), Stevens and his screenwriters, Michael Wilson and Harry Brown, were apparently having none of this--George Eastman is now a doomed romantic hero, and so his murder of Winters becomes an accident, even though he did mean to kill her but chickened out on it. And although he and Taylor did achieve a marvellous sort of rapport at times (William Mellor's soft-focus photography didn't hurt), it makes what should be a much more ambiguous relationship into the stuff of adolescent daydreams. And whatever the faults of the original material, it was much more of a nightmare . . .
Rating:  -
"A Place in the Sun" is a classic love story in a triangle. The 3 lovers are Montgomery Clift, Shelley Winters and a stunning Elizabeth Taylor. Liz was really this young once! The leads carry the PS; the supporting cast is all but invisible. A struggling Monty meets nice girl/ plain Jane SW at work. Then Monty is introduced to nice girl/rich and glamorous Liz. The affection twixt Monty and LT that existed off the screen is patently plain in PS. Monty is set to dump SW when a slight complication develops: She's pregnant! Monty is with Liz and family at a posh lakeside resort when SW shows up with bag and baggage. The contrast between the two leading ladies is stark and sad. Monty is in a vice between a beautiful rich woman and an unadorned pregnant one. The plot thickens! This reviewer hates to divulge endings, but suffice it to say that there is a fateful boat ride. One of the young ladies meets her demise. This reviewer lowered his rating because PS' fuzzy windup was a letdown! Perhaps the producers wanted to keep the run time under two hours, but PS is a rare film that might have benefited from being longer! The Academy Awards saw it otherwise, bestowing Oscars for Best Director, Screenplay, Cinematography, Costume Design, Film Editing and Music. Monty, Shelley and the movie itself were also nominated. The final word from this source is that PS is above average, interesting and worth watching, especially for those unfamiliar with a young Liz Taylor. But all those accolades and Oscars/near Oscars? It says here PS simply does not rise to those lofty Hollywood heights to which the Experts have elevated it.
Rating:  -
Voted in the year 2000 by the Library of Congress as one of the most important films ever made (first grouping of 100)
Classic film of the late 40's (Filming began late 1949, completed early 1950) filmed in the wonderfully glowing luminous style of B & W which peaked in the late 40s (It won an oscar for best B & W cinematography)
Clift gave a unique performance- a sort of passive intensity, that was uncommon for any male lead up that time. His hestitations, and air of painful vulnerability would make him a major star.
Shelley Winters is as equally brilliant as the dowdy and shrill working girl, who becomes a victim.
This was Taylors best effort of her career to this time as well.
George Stevens won as oscar for best director- and rightfully so.
His use of close ups was breathtaking, he uses the wonderful soundtrack by Franz Waxman effectively as well, while the camera hides, then moves in and never misses every nuiance of emotion.
The films moral premises are now very dated- but the moral implications of the film remain intact. A most famous film.
Based on Dreisers 'An American Tragedy' the film tried to show the 'misdirected aspirations' of American free enterprise. Stevens had to tone back the political message because the 'blacklist' was still in effect. Anne Revere, who played George Eastmans mother was black listed- and many of her scenes where cut fom the film.
Rating:  -
I get a little peeved when filmmakers make movies for the sake of art versus the need for company. For example, many readers read for company (great characters, intriguing plot) rather than for insight into the mind of a writer's sensous intellect. In the movie "A Place in the Sun" I thought this was very much the case. The film explores many things besides romance - such as the guilt of intent. The movie plot, execution, and acting are enough for the viewer to tolerate the movie in black and white yet the ending is something to be desired.
Rating: -
I love this movie, with Montgomery Cliff, Elizabeth Taylor, and Shelly Winters. Although some of the morals (pertaining to dating within a workplace) are now outdated, the theme of wanting to get ahead at all costs is still relevant. It made me afraid to go out with a guy alone in a rowboat.
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