Picnic

William Inge had his finger on the pulse of small town America. He wasn't checking the heartbeats of its inhabitants but his own. I've just said that as if I knew all about it and I don't, but I sense it. I mean, "Splendor In The Grass", "The Dark At The Top Of The Stairs", "Come Back Little Sheeba" That's all the evidence we need to know that he was a male writer with a woman's heart. "Picnic" epitomises that theory. Director Joshua Logan and writer Daniel Taradash trusted Inge's world without questioning it. Everything flows with the irrational sanity of a woman's heart. William Holden was a bit too old for the part but who cares! He is William Holden, capable to provoke passions of Mediterranean intensity at any age. He seems a bit self conscious at times and that helps the character's foibles no end. Kim Novak is breathtaking. Susan Strasberg milks her tomboy with a longing for all its worth. Betty Field, Daisy Buchanan in the original "Great Gatsby", gives a masterful performance without uttering a word that may reveal what she's actually feeling, until the end of course. That scene in which she tries to stop her daughter from going away, is as much Field's as it is Inge's. Rosalind Russell didn't get the Oscar for her superb, time bomb disguised in a school teacher's dress, performance. Her craving for sex and romance and sex and marriage and sex is as bold as anything she had ever done and Rosalind Russell new how to be bold from "His Girl Friday" to "Auntie Mame". The Moonglow sequence has become a classic moment in pictures. Deservedly so. I would suggest, if you haven't done it yet, take a trip through William Inge's territory. Familiar faces, familiar landscapes, familiar feelings, all completely new.

Hunky drifter Hal (William Holden) arrives in a small Kansas town, disturbing the status quo in "Picnic," a 1955 film based on Wiliam Inge's play and directed by Josh Logan. It co-stars Kim Novak, Susan Strasberg, Rosalind Russell, Betty Field, Cliff Robertson, Arthur O'Connell, and Verna Felton.

It's Labor Day and time for the big annual picnic. Beautiful, 19-year-old Madge Owens prepares to attend the picnic with Arthur (Robertson), a young man from a wealthy family. She fights with her jealous, nerdy sister, Millie. And she's warned by her mother (Field) that with each passing year she will become less marketable as a wife. She's advised to solidify things with Arthur. Renting a room from them is Rosemary, a schoolteacher - what one called "an old maid" back then. A brittle loudmouth, she's doesn't have not much use for her boyfriend Howard, but he's taking her to the picnic.

When Hal jumps off the train to look up his old college friend Arthur, he innocently becomes a catalyst for change. In one way or another, he manages to arouse emotions - mostly sexual - in nearly everyone he meets. A braggart who gives his loose-ends, wandering life a romantic spin, he's hoping Arthur's dad will give him a job. Then he sees Madge.

"Picnic" is a beautiful story about loneliness, settling for what you can get, love, frustration, and dreams left behind. Madge is sick of being the pretty one, Millie is sick of being the smart one, Rosemary is sick of being an old maid, Arthur is sick of not being a winner in his father's eyes. "Picnic" contains some memorable scenes, the best remembered being the classic "Moonglow" sequence when Madge shuns tradition and gives into her womanly feelings in one of the most erotic scenes ever filmed.

William Holden is too old for the role for Hal (his classmate, played by Cliff Robertson, is 29) but his casting is excellent. Virile, oozing with sex appeal and good looks, Hal turns a lot of heads when he's shirtless and when he flashes his gorgeous smile. In Madge, he sees his last chance to make something of himself; with her as his inspiration, he can do anything. Gorgeous in lavender, Kim Novak's Madge is every man's dream, and as she makes evident in her scenes with Robertson, she isn't sure this is all there is. When she meets Hal, he awakens feelings in her she's never had. Betty Field does a beautiful job as Flo Owens, a woman whose life has been one of disappointment but hopes for a good marriage for Madge. Susan Strasberg as the geeky Millie is superb - tomboyish, with feelings for things other than English literature held inside. The main characters all believe their lives are on a set path. No one believes this more than Millie. "I will be living in New York and writing books no one reads," she announces to her sister. But it's she who convinces Madge that for the fearless, life doesn't have to be set in stone.

Arthur O'Connell is effective as Rosemary's boyfriend - though he normally goes along with her, he can be tough when necessary. The scene where he's completely overcome by the town's women and can't get a word in is a classic. Arthur's afraid of change, but his life is going to change by unanimous female consent.

One of the best performances comes from veteran Verna Felton as Mrs. Potts. Her final scene with Flo Owens is so poignant as she talks about what it's meant to her to watch Flo's daughters grow up while she cares for her invalid mother. When she meets Hal, it's as if her whole existence comes alive once again. "There was a man around, and it was good," she says. Felton essays a wonderful, wise woman with an understanding of life and love and makes the role shine.

The problematic role is that of Rosemary. When people say that Picnic is dated, they're perhaps speaking of Rosemary, an old maid whose sexual desires become unbearable once she sees Hal and witnesses Hal and Madge together. "Every year I keep telling myself something will happen," she tearfully tells Howard. "But it doesn't." What's dated is the implication that an unmarried woman must be unfulfilled - the concept is dated, but it fits into '50s middle America - and don't kid yourself, step out of a big city and there are plenty of people who still feel this way. Rosemary's big confrontation scene with Howard is magnificent acting, but I frankly found Russell over the top in parts of the movie. Some of it is the character, some is not enough attention to directing her. Rosemary might be annoying, but she is also an object of pity. When you wish she'd just stop talking and leave, there's a problem.

"Picnic" doesn't tell us about the rest of these peoples' lives. The final scenes are really just the beginning. Though both Hal and Madge want to build a real life together, one wonders if they can, and if love and passion are enough to carry them through hard times. One suspects that Madge will one day return to Kansas, sadder but wiser. Hal will always have wanderlust, always put the best spin on marginal situations, and never really hold down a good job. Rosemary will be able to put on an act that she has what she wants, but that's all it will be. Without the competition of Madge, Millie may just surprise herself by blossoming, allowing the womanly part of her in, and have some opportunities in the big city that are more than career-based. In fact, of all of the characters, she perhaps has the best future in front of her.

A slice of '50s life, thought provoking, excellent characterizations - Picnic is one of the best films of the '50s with two of its brightest stars. Highly recommended.

I just watched this with Mom who hadn't seen this before so we were both watching this with fresh eyes. William Holden plays a drifter who wanders into a small town hoping to reacquaint with college buddy Cliff Robertson who's the son of a grain company boss. Robertson has Kim Novak for a girlfriend, one who's tired of being valued for her looks as she's a shoo-in for winning the title occasion's beauty contest. Other female characters start having urges around Holden like the schoolteacher played by Rosalind Russell and the teen sister of Novak played by Susan Strasberg. Joshua Logan, who also directed the play version of this, helms this film version with quite a theatrical and cinematic flourish with a music score to match that makes it quite admirable if a bit over-the-top in some scenes. Still, the performances are very good with Ms. Russell and Ms. Strasberg particularly memorable. Also, Arthur O'Connell also was good as Ms. Russell's beau. In summary, both me and Mom highly enjoyed Picnic.

Colourful and bold evocation of 1950s small town American life and mores. True William Holden is a little old for the role here but he brings such charisma to the role that it is only becomes any sort of problem in some of his cavorting with the elfin Susan Strasberg and his more boyish pranks. For the most part he is ideal as the stranger who comes to town and turns it upside down. In the UK the 50s ethos carried on well into the 60s but it is clear from this and other films, like Rebel Without a Cause, that the 50s was well and done with before the end of the decade. Holden is fine then and the supporting cast just about holds up helped by some wonderful staging, particularly during the titular, event. Kim Novak seems in a different class altogether and I don't recall, even in Vertigo, her looking quite so beautiful. The whole scene down by the water with just Holden and Strasberg and the elderly school teacher and her supposed beau and a bottle of booze is very moving but when Novak glides in, there is magic in the air. Perfectly captured the fated couple come together and we see them glide across the screen, colourful lanterns flickering beyond and Moonglow on the soundtrack. Very fine film, which despite slight casting difficulties, and an element of sentimentality, still manages to punch well above its weight in terms of significance.

Very Good movie, despite the flaws. A must for anyone into American mid-century drama. Beautifully filmed and written. Some excellent performances. The Good: Rosalind Russell, Arthur O'Connell, Betty Field, Susan Strasberg. The adequate: Kim Novak and Cliff Robertson. The not too great: William Holden. I'm not bothered by Novak's performance, she was often only as good as her director, and Joshua Logan was an entirely stagebound stylist. Holden on the other hand, is entirely miscast. Way too old for the character by at least 10 years. This is a meaty, sweaty, rebellious part suited to a young Paul Newman or James Dean, not a late '30's, already craggy faced William Holden (he was ideally suited for his Bridge on the River Kwai role). The reading of his lines is artificial and contrived, the pacing atrocious. It's really Logan's fault though. In every one of his films, characters, especially the supporting ones, end up performing like cartoon characters... (Betty Field in Bus Stop, Everyone in South Pacific and Fanny)... and in Picnic, Logan lets almost everyone go over the top with this kind of mannered, ill-paced stuff. However, I love this flick too... the story conquers the flaws, and it consistently pulls me in. Rosalind Russell (though she's allowed to go over the top too) and Arthur O'Connell have remarkable scenes together. Good Movie!