Song of the Loon

Thinking back on the various tributes and remembrances of the late Elizabeth Taylor that I read in the past few weeks, I don't recall much, if any mention of her appearance in George Steven's ponderous but memorable A Place in the Sun. In Stevens' visual strategy, Taylor is often seen at a distance, a prize to be obtained, a goal Montgomery Clift must achieve or die. She was in transition from ingenue roles like Father of the Bride. Sometimes her real uncertainty shines through very effectively.


A Place in the Sun is not a great movie. Stevens tries too hard to make a significant film and fails to make a thoroughly enjoyable one. But there are two and a half great performances here - Montgomery Clift as the ambitious but weak George Eastman, Shelley Winters living comfortably in her role as a factory girl in trouble ( her scene with a doctor she hopes will abort her out-of-wedlock child is still startling) and the freakishly dogged Raymond Burr as the prosecutor at George's murder trial. Get yourself an espresso and enjoy a languid movie that, if not great, is still some kind of classic.