Helloturia
I have absolutely never seen anything like this movie before. You have to see this movie.
Alistair Olson
After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.
Phillida
Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.
williwaw
Columbia Pictures retained the services of expert director Guy Green who had directed a beautiful movie at MGM Light In The Piazza and cast the leading lady of that film Yvette Mimieux on a loan out from her studio MGM as the above the title star of Diamond Head. Co starring in this romantic film set in Hawaii is rugged Charlton Heston and George Chakiris -who won an Oscar for West Side Story -as the romantic interest for Ms. Mimieux. Not sure what is more beautiful the scenery of Hawaii or Yvette Mimieux. Columbia also cast James Darren a Columbia pictures contract star in the film as well. I enjoyed this escapist and beautifully filmed movie. Btw Ms. Mimieux would return to MGM for a few more movies including her hit Joy In The Morning co starring with Richard Chamberlain and then retired.
MARIO GAUCI
Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, glossy soap operas were among Hollywood's most popular offerings – before such melodramatic stuff became standard TV fare, a status which holds up to this day. These are hardly my kind of genre picture – which, perhaps, explains why I've yet to sit through efforts even as acclaimed as PEYTON PLACE (1957)!Incidentally, given the title's similarity to another Charlton Heston vehicle (which actually preceded this viewing) – namely the Western ARROWHEAD (1953) – it's no wonder that this isn't a reference to anything in particular, and certainly doesn't come up at all in the script! Anyway, while the film doesn't have much of a reputation – especially since it came at the height of Heston's epic phase – I found it surprisingly tolerable (apart from some impossibly corny dance routines from the locals: the narrative is set in Hawaii, to which the star would return for the aptly-named THE HAWAIIANS [1970], which I hopefully also intend to check out in time for this ongoing Heston marathon).Interestingly, good ol' Chuck is perhaps at his most unsympathetic here – playing someone who can only be described as selfish, pig-headed and a hypocrite! Besides, given the actor's controversial latter-day political activity (and which seems to have received undue attention at the time of his passing), it's worth noting that his character in the film is persuaded to run for a place in the Senate because of his influence in the community – but the eventual campaign is botched due to personal scandals (having forbidden his kid sister Yvette Mimieux to marry local boy James Darren, is implicated in the latter's violent death, and himself impregnates Hawaiian France Nuyen!).The cast features a number of current 'stars', whose allure would basically vanish by the end of the decade: apart from the afore-mentioned Mimieux, Darren (best-remembered for the blockbuster THE GUNS OF NAVARONE [1961], he would go on to play the bewildered protagonist in Jess Franco's erotic/cerebral masterpiece VENUS IN FURS [1968]) and Nuyen (she was often paired with Hollywood leading men in such Asian-set romantic dramas), there are George Chakiris (as Darren's half-brother, who also gets in Heston's hair by falling for Mimieux himself) and Elizabeth Allen (appearing here as the glamorous sister of Heston's late wife, and naturally secretly harboring emotions for him, she would later graduate to leading lady for another Hawaiian flick – the John Ford/John Wayne comic romp DONOVAN'S REEF [1963]). An important supporting role, however, is that of veteran Aline MacMahon as the typically indomitable mother figure (of Chakiris and Darren's characters).If handled properly, such histrionic stuff can be reasonably entertaining (especially given their predilection for confrontation scenes): this one's well enough done under the circumstances (with Darren's untimely demise being handled in a particularly inventive manner) but, for good measure, includes a Freudian dream sequence towards the end! Guy Green was a Brit who, after a career as a cinematographer (winning an Oscar for David Lean's classic adaptation of GREAT EXPECTATIONS [1946]), graduated to directing: he seemed to specialize in just this type of slick 'entertainment' – one of these, LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA (1962; also with Mimieux), is being shown on Cable TV for the nth time this very week-end and which I intend to record – though his work could also go from Oscar-worthy 'message pictures' such as THE MARK (1961) and A PATCH OF BLUE (1965), perhaps his most popular effort but which I've yet to watch (I do own a recording of it, though), to the notorious gimmicky-yet-indecipherable puzzle THE MAGUS (1968)
royalgypsy
This movie was a good one for showing another view point in racism with a wealthy young white heiress who lives in Hawaii getting engaged with a native of the island that she grew up with. Her brother who always thought he was unbiased until it came to his little sister's beau has a big problem with it. Although, all along you get the feeling that she's only fond of him, after his death she goes on a binge. Not because she's sad, but because she's not sad. She states to his brother, Dean, (who she carries a torch for, and he also has wanted her for years) that his brother must of loved her but all she felt was a blank, she doesn't know how to love. She makes him leave her alone, but not long after she collapses from drinking an calls out for him. He comes to get her and takes her to his home where they come to terms with there feelings toward each other. Just when another wedding is being planned they fight and don't see each other for months. Until the birth of her brother's baby (that he doesn't want) when Dean realizes he can't go with out her anymore and comes for her. She apparently comes to realize she could love all along it just had to be the right man and agrees with a kiss. Then her brother, King sees and throws a fit, telling Dean to take her and riding his horse into the ground. At this point he seems to wake up. And endears himself by going to get his son.There is mention about a incestuous undertone between Sloane and King. There wasn't any sexual tension between them, just plain tension. King had go use to her always being is baby sister, his pet. He didn't have anyone else in his life, didn't want anyone else, he just had her. Racism was a big part of his actions, selfishness at the forefront. The scene where Sloane is dreaming about skinny dipping (reference to an earlier remark made by Dean about the time she jumped into the water buck naked and urged him to join her, but he didn't) and motioning to Dean to join her and then Dean turns into Paul, who runs in and kisses her. When he pulls away he is still Paul and she's smiling, but when she opens her eyes he has turned into King and she jerks away in misery and desperation and starts going under the water as if she is drowning. I don't believe this was suppose to be in response to some incestuous feelings that may have existed between the two siblings. It was to point out that King pushed himself into every part of her life. He set out to live up to his name and dominate and rule every part of his life and Sloane couldn't escape him even in her sleep, he had become her nightmare, never giving her peace. She had feelings of at least a young crush on Dean at an early age and he wanted her as well, but, from comments he makes later, he knew that deep down King was a racist and would not take to the idea of him becoming involved with his sister and it could only cause trouble with the still too young Sloane. She grows up, get's with Paul when they are returning from college. She never loved Paul, though. Was just attracted to him and the idea of marrying him. King objects to her marrying an island boy. He became violent about is objections, Paul is accidentally killed and Sloane is upset because she's not upset. King pushed in between her and Paul and on some level it locked in her mind. King pushes himself into everything in her life, even a dream. She can't escape him.I find Dean enthralling and loved the actor's performance. I don't think his upset was because he knew his brother would get trouble from the racial aspect, it was because he had feeling for Sloane. I'm sure he was worried for his brother, sure. But in a part of his mind he had marked Sloane for himself, even though he made up his mind to never have her. It just hit home when he found out about Paul and Sloane. You don't get a time stamp on these events, you just know it's been years. He cared about her regardless and when they were thrown together he only put up a slight hesitation before giving in to his feelings. Then of course they both had to be stubborn and fight, not talking for months until they were forced into proximity. Which was good in my opinion. Gave Sloane the time to work some stuff out in her mind (Dean said there was a war going on in her head and she had to decide who win's) and grow up. He realized that what he felt for her was too strong to ignore and he went to get her. I loved his arrogance, though it may not have been arrogance, maybe he just knew that she would be ready to take his hand if he held it out. He went to get her and it seemed almost a formality to go through the motions of apologizing and declaring his intentions out loud. He even told her "You know why I'm here". All he had to do was show up and he did. She wouldn't make the first step so he did. He knew all along it would be that way and she seemed to be waiting. Waiting on herself, mostly. She had to be ready. When he took her in his arms and held her tight she seemed happy for perhaps the first time in her life. Like coming home.
briefcas
A good film, Macbeth and Romeo-Juliet in a Hawaiian setting. Credible performances, but this film could have been shot in California or mostly on a soundstage. It deserves better than a 4.5 of 10 but surely not more than a 7. A poignant social, cultural commentary on Hawaii becoming a State in mid-Twentieth century.
