Reviews

This ABC mini series film collected a lot of well known names set around the plush Malibu community, all the players do fine work with the biggest star being Kim Novak,, but also had Oscar Winners James Coburn and the Eva Marie Saint, and other big marquee names such as Valerie Perrine and Troy Donahue, along with Chad Everett, Susan Dey, William Atherton in this series. While all the stars doe fine work and contribute fine cameos, I thought Kim Novak did the best work in this Film in a rather tricky to play part. Troy Donahue once so big a star at Warners has as slight but intriguing part in this film.

I thought Bill Atherton had a fine future in films. What happened to Bill?

I feel that while Alfred Hitchcock created this great film, the performances of Kim Novak and James Stewart raise it to Masterpiece status...of the two stars..Miss Novak's performance is the greater. Astonishingly beautiful in this film, Kim Novak always gave the impression that no matter what we knew of her character in a film, there was just a little more we didn't know. Of all the major stars Kim Novak is the most underrated and frankly under honored. How about an Honorary Oscar for this great and wondrous star??

James Stewart is perfectly cast in this movie, and this movie is deeply moving, and one cannot see it enough and further intoxicated with its magic.

Dear Academy Awards: This movie, now considered Hitchcock's finest and likely one of the great American movies of all time has a special standing with the Academy. Neither Novak, nor Stewart nor Hitchcock were Nominated much less awarded an Oscar. Neither was the movie. Of all the Players and Executives only Miss Novak survives...how about an honorary Oscar to Kim Novak for this movie and for other great portraits on the screen; some say she wasn't an Actress..I beg to differ she was so great an actress she ranks with Garbo as one of the greatest.

Miss Susan Hayward was a feminist heroine: tough, smart, edgy, beautiful beyond measure. Caught in a court fight with her estranged husband, 20th was forced to shoot Miss Hayward's scenes at the studio in Beverly Hills...no problem. They could have been shot on Mars because Susan Hayward plays this part to the hilt.

Miss Hayward and her co star Clark Gable were natural stars and natural actor..together they work magic...

The ending is particularly modern: Miss Hayward meets up with Clark Gable and instead of clinching and saying they love each other...well just see the movie, likely one of the most adult endings of all time.

Two great stars and a legendary Director created a magnificent throbbing love story that is memorable and moving on so many levels.

Henry King directed Jennifer Jones in her first hit Song of Bernadette and he again directs Jennifer Jones in this film and Miss Jones is perfect in this role and gives a edgy, beautiful performance that captures the conflict in the character and Bill Holden who hit home run after home run in the l950's with a series of smash hit films beginning with Sunset Blvd, Stalag 17, Born Yesterday,Country Girl, Picnic, and of course River Kwai is superb in this role.Hard to imagine anyone but Holden in this movie I loved the ending and cry every time I see it. For anyone who has ever loved and lost, you will understand. For those who haven't, you won't.

Kim Novak became a superstar and the biggest star in the world when this movie came out. I cannot praise Novak's performance enough as she tears the heart out in a beautifully crafted performance. I do not know of any film star as Beautiful on screen as Kim Novak in Picnic.

Bill Holden, the perfect leading man, is fine here but I would have preferred Brando or Paul Newman who did the part on Broadway. Roz Russell is a bit over the top here, but a nice turn anyway.

The movie belongs to Novak and her dance with William Holden so magical and James Wong Howe's photography so evocative, that this is one of the great movies of the l950's.

This movie is so great that every time one sees it we gain new insights re the movie and notice new little things...it is in my opinion the best directed movie I have ever seen and Billy Wilder was a true Master of the Cinema. This is one of the great dramas of the screen and to think he also made likely the greatest comedy of all time Some Like It Hot..

Gloria Swanson's landmark performance is one of the greatest in cinema history and together the fade out as Directed by Wilder and acted by Swanson is one of the greatest scenes in movie history.

William Holden is classic in this movie and is perfect casting. However it is Swanson for whom we must save our most respectful applause. There is no other female performance that comes to mind ever that can top Swanon's. And to think she did not get the Oscar!

As it was once reported, I can echo, that Susan Hayward gives the finest performance in a career noted for brilliant work.

The fine work of the great Director Robert Wise is seen here and together Hayward and Wise created one of the screen's greatest drama's and a searing indictment of Capital Punishment. The final scenes in the Jail as Miss Hayward's character Barbara Graham awaits execution are harrowing, and Miss Hayward's control in these scenes is so great that she gets more sympathy than any other actress ever could. I cannot think of anyone who could have done this role as well as Susan Hayward, and it is said Walter Wanger waited a few years to get Susan Hayward to free up her schedule to star in this film

Miss Hayward loses some of the great tricks she always used in her work and is more natural here. A truly landmark performance. Bravo Susan Hayward. Bravo Robert Wise and Bravo Walter Wanger. RIP

When David Selznick got involved no Producer no Star could stand in his way. He was unique and his like does not exist anymore. This film is a magnificent film and the cast starting with the great Claudette Colbert. Stanly Cortez's photography is superb and a work of Art, and stills from this film actually are in a Museum. Of course the highlight is the train sequence between then Mr. and Mrs. Robert Walker but soon thereafter Miss Jennifer Jones, Oscar winner for Song of Bernadette and nominated for this film married David Selznick.

While many favor the great Capra movie It's A Wonderful Life, this is my favorite Christmas movie and the fadeout is stunning.

Bravo to Colbert, Walker, Jones, Temple, Moorehead, Cortez, but mostly to the great David Selznick. Maestro!

Miss Jones returned to the screen after a 5 year absence and looked better in this film than she had in years..and gives a truly nuanced performance, edgy, beautiful, just perfect for the role of Nicole. She got beat up bad when it premiered saying she was too old for the part, seen today, she looks wonderful. Isn't that what acting is about? Does every actor have to be the exact age of the role played?

The costumes for the film to me did not seem very authentic to the period but it wasn't David Selznick's fault...he carped, badgered and stormed 20th Century Fox with endless memo's about 'this and that'. If only had DOS made this film. It is like a baseball manager guiding the team from the locker room or worse the hotel room vs. the dugout.