The Sandpiper (1965)

A free-spirited single mother forms a connection with the wed headmaster of an Episcopal boarding school in California.

Director:

Vincente Minnelli

Writers:

Martin Ransohoff (story), Irene Kamp (adaptation)

Stars:

Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Eva Marie Saint

Won 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Elizabeth Taylor	...	Laura Reynolds
Richard Burton	...	Dr. Edward Hewitt
Eva Marie Saint	...	Claire Hewitt
Charles Bronson	...	Cos Erickson
Robert Webber	...	Ward Hendricks
James Edwards	...	Larry Brant
Torin Thatcher	...	Judge Thompson
Tom Drake	...	Walter Robinson
Douglas Henderson	...	Phil Sutcliff (as Doug Henderson)
Morgan Mason	...	Danny Reynolds

Storyline

Twenty-something Laura Reynolds is a free spirit who questions social conventions, laws and regulations. A struggling artist, she lives in a secluded beach-side cabin in Big Sur with her nine year old illegitimate son, Danny, on who she has instilled her values. Because of this questioning of convention, Laura has decided to home school Danny. Also because of this questioning of the law, Danny runs into some legal problems, and as such is court ordered to be sent to San Simeon, a Christian school in Monterey. This order is against Laura's wishes. The school's headmaster is Dr. Rev. Edward Hewitt, who tries to convince Laura that San Simeon is not the prison she probably believes it to be. Married for twenty-one years to his faithful wife Claire, Edward has become more a fund-raiser at all cost (for a new chapel) rather than an educator or priest. Despite their differences, Laura and Edward begin to fall for each other. Both but especially Edward have to reconcile their feelings for ...

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Plot Keywords:

school | unwed mother | big sur | deer | love | 

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Taglines:

She gave men a taste of life that made them hunger for more!

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 June 1965 (USA)

Also Known As:

Flight of the Sandpiper

Filming Locations:

Monterey, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,300,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$15,260,000, 31 December 1965

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$30,520,000, 31 January 1970

Company Credits

Production Co:

Filmways Pictures, Venice Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Filmed on location on the Central Coast of California, specifically in Big Sur and Monterey.

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Goofs

In a beach scene, Laura is shown sketching on a drawing pad. In shots facing her, she is always holding the pad up with her left hand. In shots facing Edward, the pad is propped up against some driftwood. At one point she is lying face down, with both elbows in the sand, her left hand on her head and sketching with her right. When the camera angle changes, she is suddenly partially raised up on one side, facing Edward. The drawing pad is flat on the sand with a rock in the middle of it.

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Quotes

Laura Reynolds: [Edward is looking at Laura's watercolor ideas for the future chapel's stained glass windows] You don't like them.
Dr. Edward Hewitt: On the contrary, I like them very much. All the charm and wonder of a child's vision of creation. But there's one thing missing.
Laura Reynolds: God?
Dr. Edward Hewitt: No, man.
Laura Reynolds: I left him out.
Dr. Edward Hewitt: Why?
Laura Reynolds: Well, I... I wanted the world to be innocent and it can't be with man in it. You see, this is the universe before man came along.
Dr. Edward Hewitt: It won't do. Man is essential to any concept of the universe. Without him the universe ...
[...]

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Connections

Referenced in MGM 40th Anniversary (1964)

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Soundtracks

There's a Wideness in God's Mercy
(uncredited)
Lyrics by Frederick William Faber
Music by Lizzie Shove Tourjée
Sung by the boys at the final church service

User Reviews

The Soap-Wiper

Richard Burton dials down the angst quotient from his previous year's role as a defrocked priest in "Night of the Iguana", and Elizabeth Taylor begins warming up for her later role as Kate in "Taming of the Shrew". The music and the scenery make the film compelling enough to watch, but the psychological and theological ramblings are strictly for the soap lover. Eva Marie Saint, as the hurt wife, has a few good scenes but not nearly enough to salvage the drama. And it's fun to see a young Charles Bronson in a beatnik role. The whole effort ranks several notches above "The VIP's" and other Burton-Taylor vehicles but all in all, "The Sandpiper" is a long boring day at the beach.