The Grass Harp

If you're looking for an action-packed movie you probably won't enjoy this beautiful piece of film-making. You absolutely have to change gears to appreciate the wonderful and sensitive story it tells. Watching this movie is very much like watching an extended episode of The Waltons, right down to the narration and beautiful music. Good performances by all, and I especially enjoyed Piper Laurie's portrayal of sensitive and delicate Dolly Talbo, who lives under the thumb of her younger sister, played by Sissy Spacek. Ironically, Piper Laurie played Spacek's mother 19 years earlier in Carrie. The movie tells a tale of life and love in a small Southern town, and days gone by.

Having said that, the one criticism I have of the movie is that I didn't really CARE about the characters. I enjoyed very much watching the characters interact, and being reminded of life in a world that has almost completely disappeared. But I was more amused by them than passionate about them.

While this film may not be perfect, it's a wonderful movie; more intelligent than at least 90% of what comes out of Hollywood. As another reviewer suggested, if you have a couple of hours of quiet time, sit down with a glass of wine and enjoy.

"The Grass Harp" (1995) will remind a lot of viewers of "To Kill a Mockingbird". Not a huge surprise given that both stories involve Truman Capote's childhood (Harper Lee based the Dill Harris character on Capote). Both films also use small Alabama towns for their locations.

Capote loosely based his 1951 "The Grass Harp" novella on the eccentric maiden cousins of his childhood. For the film Piper Laurie plays good Aunt Dolly and Sissy Spacek bad Aunt Verena (who is even less likable than Pollyanna's Aunt Polly). Spacek gets to do something out of character and nicely underplays this one. Laurie gets to have even more fun and turns in a joyful performance. She is a little too good to be true but Laurie manages to sell the character with a remarkable performance. In the 1950's Laurie was an extremely pretty (and hot) young starlet but it is obvious from this and her performance in "Carrie" (playing Spacek's mother) that there was a lot of substance in that pretty package.

Edward Furlong (best know as John Conner in "Terminator 2") avoids the "Pollyanna" trap and is pretty easy to take. The coming-of-age side of the story works quite well.

"The Grass Harp" is a bit underrated, probably because the screenplay fails to capture the lyrical quality of Capote's storytelling, giving the viewer a surfeit of sentimentality compounded by a too sweet score. The title is a reference to the musical sound of blowing grass, a metaphor about intergenerational connections and the primary theme of the story.

The film would have benefited from a little more restraint. This is not a fatal flaw but the film would have been more powerful with Mockingbird's toned down production design and less colorful characters; maybe even going so far as to release it in black and white.

Those looking for action adventure and hot romance should look elsewhere. But there are a lot of "Mockingbird" fans out there who should really enjoy "The Grass Harp".

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

This is a technically perfect adaptation of Capote's stunning story based upon partially on his own experiences. Laurie is all things Dolly should be: ethereal, giddy, of understated intelligence, committed, etc. Spacek had to stretch to play the cold-hearted sister, but that's what great actors do. It is leisurely paced, but that's totally in keeping with the story. Music, sets, and all are done with precision and with plenty of soul. Matthau and Lemmon have no scenes together, and for a change, Matthau plays the ethically superior character. Edward Furlong is perfect as the story's protagonist, and Mary Steenburgen steals each scene in which she appears.

I recommend this movie highly to all who enjoy character development and Southern-US Americana.

The sort of adaptation preserving the entire flavor of novel. As an imersion in the atmosphere and colors and sensitivity of splendid novel of Truman Capote. The basic pillar - the performances. And the love for recreate a lost world in each detail. Great and delicate. Precise and wise calculated adaptation, hommage to a way to discover life and to the true magic.

A delightful movie from Truman Capote's memoir of his boyhood in the South. It is both tender and poignant. The acting is excellent. Piper Laurie as the orphan's free-spirited aunt is superb. Sissey Spacek as the other aunt is excellent. The atmosphere of that time, comes alive. A worthwhile movie for those with a tender heart.