Peyton Place
Peyton Place
| 13 December 1957 (USA)
Peyton Place Trailers

In the outwardly respectable New England community of Peyton Place, shopkeeper Constance McKenzie tries to make up for a past indiscretion -- which resulted in her illegitimate daughter Allison -- by adopting a chaste, prudish attitude towards all things sexual. In spite of herself, Constance can't help but be attracted to handsome new teacher Michael Rossi. Meanwhile, the restless Allison, who'd like to be as footloose and fancy-free as the town's "fast girl" Betty Anderson, falls sincerely in love with mixed-up mama's boy Norman Page.

Reviews
WasAnnon

Slow pace in the most part of the movie.

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Acensbart

Excellent but underrated film

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Dynamixor

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

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Matho

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

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RaineRP

I was glad I read the book before I watched the movie. The film was different than the book. In the novel, Allison McKenzie (the aspiring writer), Norman Page (mama's boy), Selena Cross (Allison's best friend who is sexually molested by her stepfather Lucas), Ted Carter (Selena's boyfriend), Rodney Harrington (Allison's crush), and Betty Anderson (the town tramp) attend Peyton Place Junior High School. In the film, they're in their senior year of Peyton Place High School. Michael Rossi, who wins Allison's mother, Constance Mckenzie's heart, comes to town to accept a job as principal at Peyton Place High School. Betty and Rodney get married in the film.

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Bob Taylor

I was 10 the year this came out; I remember seeing the trailer (on TV?) and thinking it must be wonderfully salacious. Seeing it for the first time today, I can say it is wonderfully sexy, even erotic in a restrained way. The Code was weaker by the late 50's, but you still couldn't show sexual positions--Norman and Allison are vertical on that rock, not horizontal.The excitement is verbal more than physical: Cross haranguing his stepdaughter Selena, before raping her. Rossi berating Constance for her coldness to him, just after she delivers the memorable line about men always being the same at heart, even if the situation changes. Norman and Allison circle around each other coolly, as do Rodney and Betty, not wishing to commit themselves for fear of parental disapproval, which comes anyway.Lana Turner and Diane Varsi are excellent as mother and daughter. Russ Tamblyn outshines the rest of the young actors easily. I guess they couldn't get Rock Hudson for Rossi and had to settle for a nobody--it's a shame. Lloyd Nolan gives it all he's got in the courtroom scene. This is one of my favourite films from the 50's.

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rbrankley

This film deserves a prize for hypocrisy. Despite it's trumpeting of high minded values, a salacious sexual undercurrent is only too apparent. This is particularly apparent in the performance of Lee Philips as Michael Rossi, who arrives in the hick town for which the film is named and becomes school principal. His sexual obsession soon becomes apparent in his pursuit of Lana Turner, who plays a sedate, dress shop owning widow. He tells her that he plans to introduce a sex education program at the school (remember, this is set in 1940!) and, after inviting her to be a chaperon at the school graduation dance, envelopes her in a passionate embrace which she quite properly resists. Boring and morally unsavory tripe.

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jc-osms

Later adapted by TV as a long-running soap opera-type drama, you can see why in this lengthy film, adapted from a best-selling novel with enough characters and plot strands for a whole TV series. Made around 1957 but ostensibly set in idyllic New Engand just before America's entry into the Second World War, it seemed obvious to me that the production was almost indistinguishable between the two years, at least until the War Draft occurs late in the film, which besides broadening popular appeal, enables director Robson to thus obliquely critique contemporary society and its mores on attitudes to sex, snobbery and that most popular social subject of the 50's, the so-called "generation gap". Beautifully shot in luminous colour and with a handsome cast, the film would would have worked better if it had a bit less happening - one poor family experiences alcoholism, incest, domestic violence, suicide and murder over the course of a couple of years. It's all a bit unreal and unbelievable but perversely remains gripping viewing even as I realised I shouldn't have been at all. The narrative framing device is one of the goody-goody young characters Alison MacKenzie's reminiscences of her childhood there before the War started and changed all the young folk forever. It does seem a bit Waltons-ish and sentiment does make not entirely unexpected if infrequent appearances along the way. However the last half hour settles down to a terse courtroom scene, the culmination of the incest/suicide/murder elements, with "Bonanza's" Lorne Green impressing as the prosecution counsel, well- written right up until the local doctor takes it on himself to deliver an improbable sermon attacking the town's hypocrisy which of course carries the day. It's a fairly ugly "big message" to the movie viewers as they leave the cinema but also helps to tie up other loose plot ends so that the main characters still standing all get a form of redemption for the future. The acting is good throughout if not exactly deeply felt. Lana Turner gets to look pained throughout as the frigid matriarch Constance McKenzie with her own dark secret but does so with aplomb, Arthur Kennedy tears into his part as the reprobate villain of the piece and Diane Varsi is good as Alison, the town's awakening conscience. I feel guilty for getting so hooked on such an obviously contrived and melodramatic confection, but guilty pleasures are pleasures all the same.

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