The Splendor of Natalie Wood
Here’s some momentary relief from the dubious pleasures of Climategate.
I was doing some You Tube surfing the other night, and as way led on to way, I began wondering whether Natalie Wood’s transcendent work as Deenie in “Splendor in the Grass” appears there. Sure enough, it does, and I offer this clip to you as one of the finest examples of acting in cinematic history. Wood achieves the most difficult of things here: makes it appear as though she is not acting at all.
A little bit of background, for those who haven’t seen the movie. Wood’s character Deenie is a high school student deeply in love with classmate Warren Beatty (in his film debut). Just prior to this scene, she has found out that he’s two-timed her with the school “bad” girl, the redhead who is sitting in the seat in front of her in this classroom.
When I tried to rent this film at my local video outlets, none of them carried it. This is the fate of many great works of the past—to be marginalized (“Splendor” is still available to purchase, and at Netlflicks) and then tossed into the dustbin of history, to make room for the inferior new.
And to rent at Netflix as well. You’re right. This film is virtually flawless.
Neo:
I’m not sure I quite get your complaint. I’m certainly sympathetic to your reverence for the classics. I live off them. I don’t watch television and see very few new movies. I have often said the studio systems, in their heyday, turned out more good movies in a week than now see release in a year. This is why I have a huge DVD library (that and the fact that my training is in Film). Still, all things being equal if the movie is available (and for a great price though I have no idea of the print quality) and can be rented on Netflix, what more can you ask for. It’s a miracle that there is still even such a thing as a brick and mortar video store. With the competing convenience of Netflix (Doesn’t everyone hate having to return movies after the fact), I don’t see how they generate enough foot traffic to pay overhead. “Splendor In the Grass” doesn’t get enough pulls to justify sitting on their shelf. I understand that.
Conversely, it makes no sense to me that a 27 theater complex, like my local Cinema cannot dedicate at least one screen to classics. They never run all 27 theaters at the same time.
I have not been to a movie theater in 8 years. Hollywood has lost me.
The Harry Potter movies are the only recent films that we care much of anything about–I guess it’s fair to say Hollywood has lost us too. We are also huge fans of The Lord of the Rings.
Neo’s point about the fate of the great films of the past is well-taken and interesting. I’m not sure of the reason–maybe it’s lack of exposure combined with our growing accustomed to flashy special effects. Anyway, I said something to a good friend of mine at work a couple of weeks ago (he’s about 40, some 20+ years younger than I am) about Cary Grant, just in the course of conversation. He looked at me blankly, and I said, “Haven’t you ever seen Cary Grant?” He said he’d never even heard of the guy. I mentioned North by Northwest and To Catch a Thief, and he just shook his head. I asked him if he’d ever seen any Alfred Hitchcock movies, and again came the blank look. What a sad commentary! I hate it that those works are being ignored to death. They’re such treasures!
I might not be upset about the school giving my kid an Advil, but a sedative, yes!
Thank you Neo. I loved Natalie Wood and her gifts on display in this movie in particular. I’ve seen it many times and I can still go back for more any time.
I’m pretty sure I saw Splendor in the Grass on TV many years ago, but I don’t remember it too well. I’ll have to check it out again.
Natalie Wood was uncommonly beautiful. When she died in 1981 she was 43 and I was 23, but I still thought she was more attractive than most of the 23-year-old women I knew at the time.
On the other hand, I’m a lot older now, and actually the teacher in the clip looks, um, intriguing.
🙂
She didn’t get a star on the Walk of Fame until 1987–now I hear you have to be nominated for one but not to get one until six years after your death when Britney Spears got one after a two second career. Older films should be required–my husband is 5 years younger than me–there are a lot of movies he just hasn’t seen and getting him to is hard unless it’s Humphrey Bogart. I think I was truly hit hard by Wood’s death (same age as ricki)
I’ve found many great films by watching TCM and the like, many made before I was born, 1945. I’m continually flabbergasted by their quality. Just recently I saw “Carefree” for the first time with Fred Astair and Ginger Rogers. Amazing dialog, counting on the average audience to be about 50 i.q. points higher than currently.
Also, it appears that Fred could have been or was a great golfer. Anybody who can knock golf balls around flawlessly and with perfect form while tap dancing, etc., gets my attention. I don’t even play golf. Maybe in about 20 years? At least then I’d have an exuse.
[My barber has a sign up giving discounts to seniors. I thought I’d be smart and ask him what comes next after that. He immediately replied, “Old age”. Shut me up good, real good!]
Also, when Fred Astaire is dancing I can’t take my eyes off him to even consider the Female. I just can’t do it. As a full blown male heterosexual, is something wrong with me?
Back to Natalie Wood. I haven’t come across her lately. Somehow, back in the day, I had the conception that some people were just too pretty to know how to act, which was wrong. So I’ll have to watch for her.
I was kind of upset when she drowned, though. It sounded tragic, although people die all the time and her death was not instrinsically any more tragic than that of maybe nearly everyone else. [But as some Indian remarked, “things have to die to make room for more living things”, which makes a lot of sense to me.]
I really didn’t like the fact that there was a lot of suspicion around Robert Wagner, which I thought was magnified by sexism. Males drown all the time and no one tries to pin it on some damn woman.
Btw, do you know why most drowned males are found with their zippers down? Yes, drunk, they topple into the water while they are innocently trying to relieve themselves. Well, at least it sounds good.
I think Obama and Copenhagen must be getting to me, though both are going to certainly implode. It’s fun, but really new compared to the days of Progressives complaining about everything they could think of and then some.
Unfortunately the classic movies, which used to be available on late night or weekend afternoons are now either all relegated to pay channels like TCM or simply aren’t around at all. On the other hand we are offered things like “Forrest Gump” shown eight or nine times every weekend or “CSI” marathons. Makes one wonder why I even have a TV, since I rarely, if ever even turn it on.
And what is even more unfortunate is that none of the classic movies are even to be found at video stores any more. But I can find all of the “Saw” and “Hostel” movies.
And folks wonder why our society is so sick.
Oh oh, as I speak, Robert Wagner himself is on the tube as Prince Valiant, and he’s just been shot in the back with an arrow! Fortuneately, there are two women swimming nude in a pond nearby. Whew, that was a close one!
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2003/sep2003/kaz-s30.shtml