Titled after a poem by William Wordsworth, this sizzling drama set during the late 1920s is perhaps best summed up by the female protagonist's interpretation of Wordsworth's words as she states "when we grow up, we have to forget the ideals of youth". The story circles around two romantically involved high school students who eventually come to accept that their shared dream of being happily married will not come to fruition. Tragically, the fault is not with them but rather their parents who fail to take them seriously and excellent as Natalie Wood is in the main role as solid as Warren Beatty is as her beau, Pat Hingle steals every scene he is in as Beatty's overbearing father, more concerned about his son being successful than happy. Almost a decade before writing, directing and starring 'Wanda', Barbara Loden is also just as good here as Beatty's flapper sister whose increasing rebelliousness and promiscuity only makes Hingle more and more convinced that he needs to shelter Beatty from any possible mistakes in life. The fact that Loden disappears halfway through the film never quite feels right; Wood's psychosis as a result of being sexually deprived also feels a bit fanciful, but themes and ideas of parental over-control and unintentionally poor parental advice still resonate through and through. The film is also smart enough not to fall back on an unlikely upbeat ending, instead opting for a more realistic portrait of individuals forced to move on in life. It is potent stuff and Wood has never been more radiant than she is here.
Review of Splendor in the Grass
