Blucher One of the worst movies I've ever seen

AnhartLinkin This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

InformationRap This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

Ariella Broughton It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

frankwiener Everyone in this small Kansas city desperately needs a picnic. Down and out, Hal Carter (William Holden) just rolled into town off a freight train in search of his rich college buddy, Alan Benson (Cliff Robertson), with the hope that Alan's old man, who owns a prosperous grain company, will offer him a job. First, however, Hal stumbles upon Alan's beautiful girlfriend, Madge Owens (Kim Novak), and they click from the moment their eyes first meet, forcing Madge to question her relationship with Alan, which can't be much. Madge's kid sister, Millie (Susan Strasberg), is the family intellectual and strongly resents that Madge attracts so much attention based solely on her looks, which Millie considers superficially shallow. Flo, as the single mother of the girls, is worried about her ability to raise them, but it's probably too late to be fussing about that by now. And what about Miss Rosemary (Rosalind Russell), the local high school teacher who has boarded in Flo's rooming house for what seems to be forever? Frustrated that her confirmed bachelor boyfriend, Howard Bevans (Arthur O'Connell), refuses to propose to her, Rosemary sadly observes life passing her by. Even the goofy paper boy (Nick Adams) is unfulfilled as Madge won't give him the correct time of day, let alone anything else of which he is in need.That big, community gala can't come soon enough, but instead of providing relief to these folks, it becomes a tinder box from where all of their disappointments and exasperations explode into the deceptively tranquil Kansas atmosphere. And then comes that sizzling summer dance to the intoxicating "Picnic" theme song, written by George Duning, that impressed me so much as a seven year old kid glued to his tiny, transistor radio in 1956. Holden and Novak insisted that they couldn't dance a single step, so never, ever underestimate the magical powers of Hollywood.Regrettably, many of you young whippersnappers can't appreciate the painstaking efforts of a gifted photographer, James Wong Howe, to produce such a remarkable tribute to 1950's rural America, which we will never experience again, as he surely accomplished here. I have always appreciated the effective use of transportation modes, especially trains, by film directors, and Joshua Logan, with the help of Mr. Howe, provides one of the best transportation scenes in cinematic history at the end of this movie, but I will say no more about it.Why do so many reviewers believe that Holden at age 37 was too old for the part of drifter Hal Carter? At the ripe old age of 69, I'm still drifting through life, but I'll never catch Kim Novak along the way. I already know that by now. What totally lacks credibility for me is Hal's and Alan's friendship, regardless of their ages. Upon what was that based? Speaking for myself, I could never keep up with the rich kids in college and didn't even try. And what's the bit with Holden and Robertson feeling the urge to shave their chests? I always thought that women found hairy chests sexy, not that I ever had more than a few, wayward strays. Aside from her physical beauty, Kim Novak always intrigued me by the intricacy that lied beyond her outward loveliness. In my humble view, she was only able to make the best use of her inner complexity here and as Judy Barton two years later in "Vertigo". And guess where Judy Barton's hometown was? Salina, Kansas, where much of this film was produced. We've come full circle, haven't we?Holden and Novak make an irresistibly attractive couple, and I thank Mr. Logan for having the guts to go with Holden over the other, well known options. The rest of the cast is outstanding as well, especially Russell and O'Donnell, who will always be among my favorites. Two unforgettable scenes are Russell's drunken, volcanic eruption and the moment of O'Connell's realization that, at long last, he has been helplessly corralled by Miss Rosemary and will soon be headed to that long overdue Ozarks honeymoon in the black 1950 Fordor owned by Tom and Betsy Rath in "Man in the Grey Flannel Suit", produced in the same year. They can't keep a good, solid car down for long, can they?

HotToastyRag At my house, we watch Picnic every Labor Day weekend. It's a fantastic movie, and thankfully, the plot revolves around the September holiday, so I get to watch it every year.William Holden plays a no-good drifter who shows up in a small Americana town and shakes up the residents' established paths. I'm not really a William Holden fan, so I would have preferred Paul Newman to have been cast as the lead, but he wasn't a big star yet in 1955. Turns out, Paul was the understudy in the Broadway production of Picnic, so my casting instincts were pretty good! Betty Field has two squabbling daughters, Kim Novak, the beautiful but not very bright older daughter, and Susan Strasberg, young, gawky, and jealous of her sister's beauty. Kim is engaged to the well-to-do Cliff Robertson, but when William Holden shows up, her head turns, much to her mother's dismay. Rosalind Russell plays an old maid school teacher, desperate for her long-time beau Arthur O'Connell to marry her, and although her scenes are my worst part of the film, I feel it might not be fair to blame her performance. It might be her written character who gets on my nerves.This William Inge classic is a staple on must-see lists, and I suggest you add it to yours. There are unforgettable lines, like Kim Novak's, "I get so tired of just being told I'm pretty," and life lessons that really make you think: "You don't love someone because they're perfect." It's also a wonderful slice of nostalgia, taking place during a time when Labor Day was revered by all as the last weekend of summer vacation. Nowadays, school starts in early or mid-August, so the magic of Labor Day is no longer felt, and is even hard to imagine. But if you can, try to imagine that last precious couple of days of summer when anything is possible, and the most beautiful girl in town can be crowned queen for an evening, the same evening she falls in love with someone who thinks he doesn't deserve her.

rixrex Many fine scenes in this film make it one to see. Many fine performances as well. However, there are some scenes that are weak and performances in such scenes that aren't as strong as others. Some dialog that doesn't ring true, meaning that it doesn't seem as if it would actually be said that way in reality, but instead is merely a way to get to a point being made.So there are a few stodgy scenes that bring the film in whole down from greatness, to being very good. That doesn't mean it isn't a good film, as it is, just a few missteps along the way.This isn't due to the emotional yet illogical behavior of the leads. Of course, logically we know that the relationship for Hal and Maddie is pretty well doomed to fail just as her mother's did, but such is the nature of people in love, even with a love based upon first impression physical attraction. So the ending of the two lovers going to meet in Tulsa on separate transports is quite telling and foreboding. That in itself nearly wipes away all of the weak scenes.

Claudio Carvalho The drifter Hal Carter (William Holden) hitchhikes by train to a small town to visit the college friend Alan Benson (Cliff Robertson), who is the son of the industrialist Mr. Benson (Raymond Bailey) that is the wealthiest person in town.Hal asks for a small job to Ms. Helen Potts (Verna Felton) and the old lady feels affection for him and tells that nobody works in the Labor Day. She gives a breakfast to Hal and he meets her next door neighbor, the gorgeous Marjorie "Madge" Owens (Kim Novak) that is Alan's girlfriend. Then Hal is welcomed by Alan that invites him to go to the local picnic with Madge's younger sister Millie Owens (Susan Strasberg). Hal is a braggart, but attractive and gentle, and he becomes successful with the local girls. However, he falls in love with Madge and Alan feels betrayed by his best friend."Picnic" is a dated and not believable romance, but also delightful to see. I saw this film for the first day on VHS on 29 January 2003 and in that occasion I liked it more than now. I have just seen this film again on DVD and I found the thirty-seven year old William Holden absolutely miscast in the role of a youngster of twenty and something years old. When the spinster Rosemary (Rosalind Russell) has an argument with Hal and asks him to look himself in the mirror, William Holden is already an older man and the scene loses the impact. My vote is six.Title (Brazil): "Férias de Amor" ("Vacation of Love")