Review of Peyton Place (1957) by I Don't Know W — 24 Jul 2011

Obviously, this movie was recognized by the academy because it was controversial and very blue. And to that end, its true. This movie is VERY sexually progressive and forthcoming. From the get go, it is acknowledged that teen boys have sexual desires. So do the girls. And so do moms and dads. We also go through all of the shame and tragedy that sometimes comes in sex. And it all happens under the microcosm of a small town where position and reputation are everything.

Why I didn't like this movie; is because its absolutely absurd. It's got frickin' everything. The poor girl from the shacks with an alcoholic abusive stepfather. The class president risking his dad's prominence by dating the town whore. Our prissy narrator whose logical desires are shunned by her overbearing mother. The shy boy with the lonely mom who won't let him have his own life. And apparently, no one is ever happy ever.

Something crazy and tragic happens to all of these people. The movie should have ended once the narrator escaped to New York. But no, we had to endure a bullshit trial based on one of these tragic events just so we can hold a mirror up to our small town community and preach that their not living up to the values the aspire to. It's not a bad message. It just could have been told in a less obnoxious way. Which is also true of the rest of the movie.