Review of A Place in the Sun (1951) by Uditha D — 12 Dec 2011
A Place in the Sun broke down all those expectations I harbored for it. I sincerely hoped it to be more stifling and more humanistic on its themes: predominantly capitalism's repugnant seclusion and man's almost primal and exploitative nature, among others.
But in the end, it was more about George and Angela Vickers' love affair than about those. Shelley Winters' performance was one thing, however, that was really worth watching, and the music by Franz Waxman wasn't bad either.
It may have won the Best Director Oscar, but George Stevens' A Place in the Sun was, in my opinion, more deeply rooted in sentimental parades than in those topics it should have been preoccupied with.
That being said, Elizabeth Taylor was really beautiful in this film, and as for Montgomery Clift, he was handsome as well. The latter was even more effective at times when he took on the character of a meek, no harm intending man who becomes more and more aggressively brutal towards the climax of this poignant tragedy.
It's not that A Place in the Sun wasn't good: it has all the makings of a classic. But it simply wasn't effective enough, and it had too much sentimentality.
This review of A Place in the Sun (1951) was written by Uditha D on 12 Dec 2011.
A Place in the Sun has generally received very positive reviews.
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