Summer Place

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Considering the amount of money it made for the studio at the time, A Summer Place has gotten very little respect in the home video market. The laserdisc, as this reviewer recalls, wasn't even letterboxed, and had no extras to speak of. The Warner Home Video DVD is a modest improvement in that department, at least including the original trailer and offering a letterboxed (about 1.85-to-1) image that's so crisp that it actually defeats some of the studio-generated reality -- the picture and sound are so sharp that you can spot when the action moves from a location to a set with barely a glance. The sharpness also gives full play to Max Steiner's lush, romantic score (of which the well-known "Theme From 'A Summer Place'" is just a small virtue), which is another good reason for buying this DVD. The 36 chapter markers are well-selected, and their mere presence indicates that someone spent some time on this release, even if they didn't exactly load it up with bonus features. This was one of Sandra Dee's better movies, and it's unfortunate that she didn't live long enough to have the chance to do a commentary -- she was genuinely proud of her work here, and it was a sad moment when, a few years before her death, she and co-star Troy Donahue were invited to speak at an anniversary showing of the film, only to discover that most of the audience was there to mock the movie. As the trailer reminds us, at the time in 1959, the plot -- involving illicit romance between married couples and their children -- was groundbreaking subject matter for American movies, and not the easiest kind of material to present on screen; and perhaps younger viewers should look at the trailer before looking at the movie, to get some perspective on what they're seeing. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide

DVD FEATURES:

• Region: 1
• Number of Discs: 1
• Audio: Dolby Digital Mono
• Screen: Color, Soft-Matted WSE for 16x9 TV
• Subtitle: English
• Features:
  • Theatrical trailer
  • Subtitles: English (feature film only)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Richard Egan - Ken Jorgenson
       Dorothy McGuire - Sylvia Hunter
       Sandra Dee - Molly Jorgenson
       Arthur Kennedy - Bart Hunter
       Troy Donahue - John Hunter

• Director:

  Delmer Daves

• Producer:

  Delmer Daves

• Book Author:

  Sloan Wilson

• Screenwriter:

  Delmer Daves

• Cinematographer:

  Harry Stradling

• Composer (Music Score):

  Max Steiner

• Editor:

  Owen Marks

• Art Director:

  Leo K. Kuter

REVIEW:

• Propelled by a certain degree of infamy (due to its stand on sexual matters), an attractive pair of young lovers and a theme song that for a while was pretty near inescapable, A Summer Place was a big hit upon its initial release. Seen today, it's pretty tame stuff, and modern audiences will laugh at some of the soapier moments (as well as some of sappier moments, usually given to Troy Donahue and/or Sandra Dee). Still, there's enough to A Summer Place to make it consistently enjoyable. Delmer Daves has directed slickly and stylishly, and there's some good over-the-top fun from the wicked Constance Ford. Indeed, the cast in general makes the film worth watching. Donahue can't really overcome a great deal of his material, but Dee does very well and in her centerpiece "examination" scene is exceptional. Richard Egan also does a fine job, even making the bluntly written "this is what the film is really all about" speeches work as well as can be expected. Even better are Arthur Kennedy and a gorgeous Dorothy McGuire who bring much more skill to their roles than is necessary, and Beulah Bondi, who seems to relish the rare opportunity of playing a member of the upper class. They're all shown off to their best visual advantage via Harry Stradling's yummy cinematography, which by itself is almost enough to make the viewer forgive the screenplay for its strained stretches. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide

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