Picnic
Director- Joshua Logan
Cast- William Holden, Kim Novak
Country of Origin- U.S.
Distributor - Eureka
Number of discs – 1
Reviewed by - Tyler Miller
Date- 07/14/2019
PICNIC (1956) is one of the landmarks in big scope melodrama of the 1950’s. I discovered the film through Joe Bob Briggs (aka John Bloom) book “Profoundly Erotic: Sexy Movies that Changed History”, where he makes the claim it’s one of the groundbreaking works of erotic drama. The film viewed in 2019 is a bit over the top and the sexiness is laughable. But hidden away is some true moments of artistic genius. The good folks at Eureka! Have released the film in a stunning transfer for the European market.
The film tells the story of drifter and college dropout Hal (William Holden) who returns to his Kansas hometown on Labor Day before the big town picnic. Hal is out of work and hopes to start fresh with the help of his wealthy college buddy Alan (Cliff Robertson). But his unusual flamboyant behavior and habit of chasing every pretty woman makes putting up with Hal a big issue. On the way to the big picnic, Hal soon finds himself falling for the bored and adventurous Madge (Kim Novak), who is happens to be Alan’s girlfriend.
PICNIC is an adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize winning play of the same name by William Inge. The film is stagey and hasn’t aged well. Most of the issues come the interplay between Novak and Betty Field, who plays her mother. Field isn’t given much material to work with and the few big scenes she has is all about the fear of status and class standing. It’s given as much emotional weight as a Hallmark Channel movie. Kim Novak also seems miscast in the role. She feels too sleepy and distant, while the character is needed to be seductive or at the very least a wild spirit.
The story has a depressing subtext of an America small town and everyone’s desire to leave. The film sadly doesn’t deliver on this and instead comes off as sappy small-town drama with superficial America values. The supporting characters are loud cartoons with burst of intense emotions.
The cinematography of James Wong Howe does save the film and feels ever shot of this Cinemascope with vivid colors. The film’s brightest peak is the stunning dance between Holden and Novak. The only time the characters seem to have natural chemistry. The scene is highlighted with some soft-focus lights of various colors. For this brief time, you can see the magic of young love.
Eureka! Brings PICNIC to life with a handsome transfer and sound mix. Out of the two audio options, the English DTS-HD MA 5.1 is balanced with some great use of sound effects. The second track is the softer sounding English LPCM 2.0. Both tracks are free or errors or hiss. English Subtitles are included.
Extras are slim with an original theatrical trailer and an archival interview with Kim Novak. The interview is done as a slideshow with stills and productions pictures. The Case itself comes with a booklet of liner notes by film critic Travis Crawford.
