A Summer Place

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A Summer Place

1959,

2h 10m,

Drama

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86%

7 Reviews

Tomatometer

71%

1,000+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

86%

Tomatometer

7 Reviews

71%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

The big-screen adaptation of Sloan Wilson's popular novel follows wealthy Ken Jorgenson (Richard Egan) as he brings his wife (Constance Ford) and teenage daughter, Molly (Sandra Dee), to the Maine vacation spot where he worked as a middle-class youth. When Ken reunites with his former flame, the now-married Sylvia (Dorothy McGuire), it sparks a passionate tryst. Meanwhile, Sylvia's son, Johnny (Troy Donahue), and Molly begin a romance of their own, unaware of their parents' affair.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Nov 8, 2025

3/4

It's a first-class melodrama for about an hour; it’s during the second half that it goes somewhat astray.

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Steve Crum

Video-Reviewmaster.com

Jun 7, 2007

3/5

The movie is so-so, BUT that great theme music!

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David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

Mar 19, 2007

1.5/4

Overlong and overwrought...

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Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Jul 4, 2005

B-

Reflecting the sexual angsts and domestic anxieties of the 1950s, Delmer Daves' schmaltzy melodrama is known today for catapulting Troy Donahue and Sandra Dee to stardom and for Max Steiner's melodic tune, which became that year's most popular song.

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James Sanford

Kalamazoo Gazette

Jan 23, 2004

4/5

Soap opera supreme, 1950s-style. "We've got to be good..."

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Carol Cling

Las Vegas Review-Journal

Jan 12, 2004

3/5

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Han R

Jun 4, 2018

At the dawn of America's sexual awakening, two couples' secret affairs parallel each other passions and regrets in a totalitarian culture of staid morales. Steiner's phenomenal score envelopes the whole in a romantically cautionary blanket.

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Anakin L

Mar 18, 2018

Sloan Wilson made some serious money for the movie rights to this film (from his popular book). However, he didn't like the movie treatment at all. He was hired as a sort of 'advisor' to the film, mostly to help Daves with his treatment (which condensed the book from over 20 to 1 year). Although his 'Man In The Gray Flannel Suit' was a massive hit and critics favorite Wilson never recovered from the personal hit his career took after 'Summer Place'. Which is sad. He was a fine chronicler of the upper crust of America post WW II and managed to turn their lives into something of interest to the rest of us. Wilson spent the rest of his career writing about very similar subjects/topics but was never able to recapture the great success of his first two major efforts. Many of his fans, after seeing this move, felt like saying 'say it ain't so Sloan'. Wilson did return to with 'Man In The Gray Flannel Suit II' in 1984, a 30-year gap. He never returned to 'A Summer Place'.

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Delmer Daves

Director

Richard Egan

Ken Jorgenson

Dorothy McGuire

Sylvia Hunter

Sandra Dee

Molly Jorgenson

Arthur Kennedy

Bart Hunter

Troy Donahue

Johnny Hunter

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Synopsis

The big-screen adaptation of Sloan Wilson's popular novel follows wealthy Ken Jorgenson (Richard Egan) as he brings his wife (Constance Ford) and teenage daughter, Molly (Sandra Dee), to the Maine vacation spot where he worked as a middle-class youth. When Ken reunites with his former flame, the now-married Sylvia (Dorothy McGuire), it sparks a passionate tryst. Meanwhile, Sylvia's son, Johnny (Troy Donahue), and Molly begin a romance of their own, unaware of their parents' affair.

Director: Delmer Daves
Producer: Delmer Daves
Screenwriter: Delmer Daves
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Warner Brothers/Seven Arts
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 22, 1959, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2009
Runtime: 2h 10m

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