Neither of my parents pledged a fraternity or sorority during their college days, so I don't have their stories for reference, but I did experience college fraternity and sorority trappings myself when I was in college. I didn't have the desire nor funds to pledge, but I was affected none-the-less by effectively losing my close friends when they pledged. The movie was true to life in that regard, in how it shows the cliques that form and prejudices and alienation against those who aren't pledged. As for the subject matter, I'm sure those who pledged would be able to judge the accuracies of what happened to them versus the characters.
The acting was interesting. Being as though this was a film early in the careers of many aspiring talents, I have to say I gave their abilities a break as much as I could, but their melodrama was trying my nerves. It isn't surprising that a great many of the cast ended up with B-Z careers. As I watched, I kept wondering what direction Negulesco was giving to the talent, as they seemed almost out of control with their rigid overacting. They were people pretending to be in a situation, not people becoming real and believable characters. I compared TCoMLG to "Daddy Long Legs" and "Johnny Belinda" only to come away with the realization that Negulesco didn't seem to pull anything from the actors, resulting in a lack of believability on par with a middle-school play. A few passable moments was all that came through, filling the rest of the movie with stiff melodrama. I never connected with a character in the film, and that is the fault of the director...and I am a Jeanne Crain fan! The cinematography was dull and very studioesque. Jackson definitely kept the scenes simple, leaving creativity outside the studio gates. This film was close to the end of his career, and being as though most of his career was spent in the very early days of the medium, it is my impression he believed in getting the basics, just the basics and only the basics. Shot selection, which should have been decided upon by the director and cinematographer, was boring. The only thing visually interesting in the film was the crazy hell week costumes and gags.
The dialog was fake and unbelievable, leaving the actors with very little to work with. It was as if the dialog was written by someone who had never had a real conversation in their life. The plot itself seemed forced, as the climax sailed into a "everything is going to be just fine, i have learned my lesson" along with a morality filled no-shucks about it Hollywood ending.
The best part of the film was seeing Mrs Howell from Gilligan's Island, Thelma Lou from Andy Griffith and Christopher Pike from Star Trek in very early roles.
The movie isn't unbearable; it IS watchable. If you want to see Jeanne Crain in other classics where she has better direction, give State Fair or A Letter to Three Wives a look. Even better is Dangerous Crossing. If you want to see Negulesco's better work, give Three Came Home a watch. All of these recommendations have better scripts, better acting and direction, more visually interesting, and characters that are potentially connectible to the viewer.
The acting was interesting. Being as though this was a film early in the careers of many aspiring talents, I have to say I gave their abilities a break as much as I could, but their melodrama was trying my nerves. It isn't surprising that a great many of the cast ended up with B-Z careers. As I watched, I kept wondering what direction Negulesco was giving to the talent, as they seemed almost out of control with their rigid overacting. They were people pretending to be in a situation, not people becoming real and believable characters. I compared TCoMLG to "Daddy Long Legs" and "Johnny Belinda" only to come away with the realization that Negulesco didn't seem to pull anything from the actors, resulting in a lack of believability on par with a middle-school play. A few passable moments was all that came through, filling the rest of the movie with stiff melodrama. I never connected with a character in the film, and that is the fault of the director...and I am a Jeanne Crain fan! The cinematography was dull and very studioesque. Jackson definitely kept the scenes simple, leaving creativity outside the studio gates. This film was close to the end of his career, and being as though most of his career was spent in the very early days of the medium, it is my impression he believed in getting the basics, just the basics and only the basics. Shot selection, which should have been decided upon by the director and cinematographer, was boring. The only thing visually interesting in the film was the crazy hell week costumes and gags.
The dialog was fake and unbelievable, leaving the actors with very little to work with. It was as if the dialog was written by someone who had never had a real conversation in their life. The plot itself seemed forced, as the climax sailed into a "everything is going to be just fine, i have learned my lesson" along with a morality filled no-shucks about it Hollywood ending.
The best part of the film was seeing Mrs Howell from Gilligan's Island, Thelma Lou from Andy Griffith and Christopher Pike from Star Trek in very early roles.
The movie isn't unbearable; it IS watchable. If you want to see Jeanne Crain in other classics where she has better direction, give State Fair or A Letter to Three Wives a look. Even better is Dangerous Crossing. If you want to see Negulesco's better work, give Three Came Home a watch. All of these recommendations have better scripts, better acting and direction, more visually interesting, and characters that are potentially connectible to the viewer.