May 3, 2011
49. Summer Magic (1963)
Starring Hayley Mills, Burl Ives, Dorothy McGuire, Deborah Walley, Una Merkel
Directed by James Neilson
Plot: “A Bostonian widow moves with her kids to the country.” (from IMDb)
This is a mediocre family film from the golden age of Disney live-action pictures. It’s definitely not as good as some of Hayley’s other movies. I found the songs and nature shots to be a little annoying, but I imagine that it would appeal more to kids. This wasn’t my favorite, but it’s not a bad film. It just seems to lack a certain ‘something’.
If you’d like to read more about this film, I found this helpful in-depth review here.
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Oh, I also wanted to mention that while I was recovering from my wisdom teeth operation, my dad was watching All Quiet On the Western Front. I had heard lots about it but never actually seen it (neither had he). Well, I can’t really say I watched the whole thing (I was dozing in and out for most of it) but I think I got the gist of story. I did catch the last 15-20 minutes or so, and that alone was really powerful. I was just amazed at the impact of the ending. It’s really a cinematic masterpiece. I don’t want to spoil it for you if you haven’t seen it, but those closing scenes are incredibly moving. I also liked the impact of no music—just “THE END”. I’m not sure if that was intentional, but it said a lot more than a rousing finale would have. Okay, I just had to ramble a bit about that. Maybe someday I’ll have the patience to sit through the entire film (war movies usually aren’t my thing, but this one might be an exception).
