{"id":2581,"date":"2013-02-01T19:35:48","date_gmt":"2013-02-01T18:35:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/?p=2581"},"modified":"2013-02-01T19:35:48","modified_gmt":"2013-02-01T18:35:48","slug":"a-place-in-the-sun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2013\/02\/01\/a-place-in-the-sun\/","title":{"rendered":"A Place in the Sun"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
A Place in the Sun<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\n

\nFormat:<\/B> Cinema

\nRelease date:<\/B> 1 February 2013

\nVenues:<\/B> Key cities

\nDistributor:<\/B> BFI Distribution

\nDirector:<\/B> George Stevens

\nWriters:<\/B> Michael Wilson, Harry Brown

\nBased on the novel by:<\/B> Theodore Dreiser

\nBased on the play adapted from the novel by:<\/B> Patrick Kearney

\nCast:<\/B> Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth Taylor, Shelley Winters

\nUSA 1951

\n122 mins
\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

An attractive young man in a leather jacket stands by the side of road, hitchhiking. He\u2019s George Eastman (Montgomery Clift), the impoverished nephew of an extremely wealthy upper-class business owner, who has recently offered to give George a job. As he waits, a white convertible whips past, a beautiful and oblivious woman driving the car, leaving him behind in the dust. Finally, a battered pick-up truck picks George up and delivers him to his uncle\u2019s factory, where he\u2019s eventually given a lowly, menial job. <\/p>\n

This opening sequence establishes the whole tone of A Place in the Sun<\/i> (1951). George may share the same last name as his successful relatives, but he\u2019s grown up without any of the privileges they enjoy. Despite his ambition and dreams of working his way up through the company, he ignores the rules about not dating co-workers and quickly finds himself involved with Alice (Shelley Winters), a plain, homely girl who seems willing to settle for her place in the world. But when, on a visit to his uncle\u2019s palatial home, George runs into the same gorgeous owner of the convertible, Angela Vickers (Elizabeth Taylor), he\u2019s plunged into a love triangle, caught between two women, one working-class, the other a wealthy socialite; one his current reality and the other a dream of wealth and success.<\/p>\n

Winner of six Oscars, A Place in the Sun<\/I>, based on Theodore Dreiser\u2019s novel, An American Tragedy<\/i>, (the book title gives away a bit more of the story), is a bruising mix of melodrama and romance with touches of film noir<\/i>. The on-screen chemistry between Clift and Taylor is notorious; Angela is all soft focus as she gazes adoringly at George, who is breathtakingly handsome yet almost child-like, sensitive and touchingly insecure. Their love is immediate; at first the obstacles of class and wealth seem surmountable. But although Angela can briefly rescue George from his everyday life, she can\u2019t save him when he makes a fatal error after he discovers that Alice is pregnant. <\/p>\n

Stevens\u2019s incredible attention to detail and perfectly thought-out mise en sc\u00e8ne<\/i> mean that much of the drama and the tension is built up wordlessly through clues and reoccurring motifs. Seen through the window of George\u2019s tiny apartment, a neon sign flashes the name \u2018Vickers\u2019 \u2013 a reminder of Angela, but also her status. A news report he listens to on the radio details a number of accidents due to the sultry summer weather, warning listeners to be cautious near open water. A reproduction of John Everett Millais\u2019s romantic, pre-Raphaelite painting Ophelia<\/i> hangs on the wall. The first dark thought seemingly seeps into George\u2019s consciousness at the same time as it does in the minds of the audience. From this point on, the audience is complicit. <\/p>\n

The decision by Stevens to make Alice\u2019s character so unappealing, and to focus instead on Angela\u2019s radiant beauty and the amazing chemistry between Taylor and Clift, introduces a degree of moral ambiguity into the film. Rather than condemn George for his behaviour towards Alice, it\u2019s easy to find yourself hoping that he and Angela can somehow find a way to be together, even if that means committing questionable, even criminal acts. <\/p>\n

With some excellent performances, and William C. Mellor\u2019s gorgeous black and white cinematography, Stevens crafted a compelling, textured film that is much richer than a searing on-screen romance. <\/p>\n

Sarah Cronin<\/B><\/I><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Winner of six Oscars, A Place in the Sun<\/I> is a bruising mix of melodrama and romance with touches of film noir<\/i>.
\nReview by Sarah Cronin<\/B><\/I><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[11,1],"tags":[563,565,411,564,566],"class_list":["post-2581","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-check-it-out","category-cinema-releases","tag-classic-hollywood","tag-elizabeth-taylor","tag-hollywood-cinema","tag-montgomery-clift","tag-theodore-dreiser"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","wps_subtitle":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/purUP-FD","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4202,"url":"https:\/\/www.electricsheepmagazine.co.uk\/reviews\/2014\/03\/20\/jodorowskys-dune\/","url_meta":{"origin":2581,"position":0},"title":"Jodorowsky’s Dune","author":"Pam Jahn","date":"March 20, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Frank Pavich's documentary is as close as we're ever going to get to seeing what might have been one of the great movies of the late 20th century. 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