Spoiler Alert George Steven's 1951 A Place in the Sun, starring Montgomery Clift and Elizabeth Taylor as the twisted lovers, is a classic movie of its time. George Eastman (Clift) hitchhikes into town to get a job from his Uncle, packing bathing suits and fighting his loneliness. While he is waiting for a ride Angela Vickers (Taylor) drives right by him. Battling his loneliness, George gets involved with one of is coworkers Alice Tripp (Shelley Winters). After he is presented with a promotion, he gets invited to a party at the Vickers home, an all around wealthy family of the 50's. Quickly falling in love with Angela, a twisted love triangle is started and the two of them continue to stay together and George is also forced to continue his relationship with Alice. This film opens with George standing along side the road trying to hitch a ride. As he turns and looks over at a billboard the camera pans in on his face. The panning of the camera is important through out the film. It reflects emotions and gives the audience a sense of what is going to happen and what appears to be important. The opening of George trying to catch a ride is also important because it is a symbol of the fifties. It sets the mood of its time. Along with the panning of the camera, soft focus and fade-ins are also important in this film. Soft focus was used in many of the kissing scenes to help deliver a more emotional feeling. When George and Angela were dancing we see a fade-in of Angela's face. The fade-ins give meaning to the scene and also show the memories that the person is having. At the end of the movie when George is sitting in his jail cell a fade-up is used to display a memory of Angela that he is thinking about. The use of soft focus and fade-in/outs are all-important aspect that made this movie successful. They help explore the characters feelings and set moods to engage the audience with excitement.
Review of A Place in the Sun
