Splendor in the Grass (1961)

I watched Splendor In The Grass today in its entirety for the first time. I had seen bits and pieces of it on late night TV before, and had planned to try and see the whole movie for many years. I must say that I strongly disagree with the notion that this movie is "dated" and has lost its power over the last 40 years. This movie is not about un-requited love, but rather about two people who are deeply in love with each other. Unfortunately, due to various external forces such as their parents, their peers, the pressure to fit in with the rest of "normal" society, their fears, their innocent lack of understanding of how special their feelings are for each other, etc. all lead to one screwed up attempt after another to open up to each other and try to act on what they feel in their hearts. While some of the dialogue may be "dated", these two people struggling with love together is in my opinion as timeless as love itself.

This is one of those rare movies that while brilliant in its day, is somehow enhanced further by its age (it was filed 40 years ago in 1961). The age of the movie seems to make its message even more powerful. Lost love, time marching on, people trying to leave the past in the past and move forward, these messages are somehow made more realistic and more moving by the knowledge of the passage of time that has occurred since this film was made. Am I making any sense here?

My gosh, Natalie Wood was a flower in full bloom when she appeared in this film. What a beautiful young woman she was and she gave a wonderful performance as Deannie. Warren Beatty was good too as Bud, her high school sweetheart, but Natalie Wood stole the show. What a lucky guy Robert Wagner was for being married twice to this beautiful and talented woman. What is it about this film, that in spite of the fact that I never knew Natalie Wood in real life, just watching her in this film and realizing she is gone from this world brings me deep feelings of sadness. She would be 63 years old now, the same age as my mother, had she not been tragically killed in a drowning accident in California.

I am not educated in the art of film making or acting. However, I am a lover of good movies. This film makes we wish I had studied acting or directing or film or whatever, so that I could be involved in the production of movies like Splendor in The Grass.

I am babbling and jumping around all over the place here but I want to add a couple more thoughts. I disagree with the notion that this movie tries to sell the message that one must forget about the past and move on. To the contrary, I think the true message delivered by this film is that you only have one life on this planet, one chance, and if you are lucky enough to find someone that makes you feel the way Deannie and Bud felt for each other, you should do your best to explore it for what it is and not throw it away, because you are young. The future may not always bring someone else along that makes you feel the same way again. Also, parent's may think they know what is best for their children at all times, especially about who they should go out with or become involved with. But parent's have to let their children live their own lives, or their meddling may do way more harm and none of the good they intended.