Picnic: ... ain't no picnic: quality 1950s realism ___ 8.5/10 <meta name="keywords" content="Picnic, William Holden, Kim Novak, William Inge, 1950s realism" /> <meta name="Creationdate" content="September 03, 2010" /> <link href="../../../CSS/master.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" /> <link href="../../../CSS/misc.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" /> <link href="../../../CSS/misc_layers_styles.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" /> <style type="text/css">  </style> <script src="../../../Scripts/AC_RunActiveContent.js" type="text/javascript"></script> </head> <body class="big"> <div id="Layer24"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Movie_Review_Page_Template/Banner_Heading_Movie_Review.jpg" alt="MR_Banner_Header" width="441" height="143" /></div> <table width="845" height="178" border="0" cellpadding="5" id="toptable"> <tr> <td width="171" align="left" valign="middle" id="Layer1"><a href="../../index.htm"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Column_Page_Template/Main_tab.jpg" alt="Main" width="170" height="25" border="0" /></a><a href="../../01_Columns/All_Columns.htm"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Column_Page_Template/Columns_tab.jpg" alt="Columns" width="170" height="25" border="0" /></a><a href="../All_Movies.htm"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Column_Page_Template/Movie_Reviews_tab.jpg" alt="Movies" width="170" height="25" border="0" /></a><a href="../../03_Book_Reviews/All_Book_Reviews.htm"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Column_Page_Template/Book_Reviews_tab.jpg" alt="Books" width="170" height="25" border="0" /></a><a href="../../04_Articles/All_Articles.htm"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Column_Page_Template/Articles_tab.jpg" alt="Articles" width="170" height="25" border="0" /></a><a href="../../06_Guest/All_Guest.htm"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Column_Page_Template/Guests_tab.jpg" alt="Guests" width="170" height="25" border="0" /></a></td> <td width="456" align="left" valign="top" id="topcentercell"><p align="right" class="style5"><br /> </p> </td> <td width="180" align="right" valign="middle"><div align="right"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Movie_All/CC_Movies_Art_Piece.jpg" alt="MR_Art_Piece" width="170" height="151" /></div></td> </tr> </table> <table width="836" height="2306" border="0" cellpadding="5"> <tr> <td width="123" height="28" align="left" valign="top"></td> <td width="542" rowspan="2" valign="top" id="ccmaintdcellborderandbg"><h1 id="h1_My_Headings">Picnic <br /> <span class="style30" id="ccindexleaderheadingsub"><em>... ain't no picnic: quality 1950s realism ___ 8.5/10 </em></span></h1> <p id="ccmoviedirectedbybanner"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0767827791/?tag=thecofcoa-20"><img src="Graphics/100902_Picnic.gif" alt="Picnic" width="166" height="248" border="0" align="right" /></a>Play <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0408718/" onclick="(new Image()).src='/rg/writerlist/position-1/images/b.gif?link=name/nm0000175/';">William Inge </a><br /> Screenplay <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0850168/">Daniel Taradash</a> <br /> and Directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0517597/" onclick="(new Image()).src='/rg/writerlist/position-2/images/b.gif?link=name/nm0001104/';">Joshua Logan </a> </p> <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000034/">William Holden</a> ... Hal Carter <br /> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001571/">Kim Novak</a> ... Marjorie 'Madge' Owens <br /> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0275897/">Betty Field</a> ... Flo Owens <br /> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001782/">Susan Strasberg</a> ... Millie Owens <br /> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0731772/">Cliff Robertson</a> ... Alan Benson <br /> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0640023/">Arthur O'Connell</a> ... Howard Bevans <br /> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0271658/">Verna Felton</a> ... Helen Potts <br /> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0011244/">Nick Adams</a> ... Bomber <br /> <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0751426/">Rosalind Russell</a> ... Rosemary Sidney </p> <hr width="30%" /> <p align="left" id="paragraphnoteindented">[<em>Train horn sounds several blasts</em>] <br /> <strong>Hal Carter</strong>: Listen, baby, you're the only real thing I ever wanted, ever. You're mine. I gotta claim what's mine, or I'll be nothing as long as I live. You love me. You know it. You love me. <br /> [<em>Hal turns as he runs for passing freight train</em>] <br /> <strong>Hal Carter</strong>: You love me. <br /> <strong>Flo Owens</strong>: oh, Madge... <br /> [<em>Madge runs up to her room and Flo walks to Mrs. Potts</em>] <br /> <strong>Flo Owens</strong>: You liked him, didn't you Helen? <br /> <strong>Helen Potts</strong>: Yes, I did. I got so used to things as they were: Everything so prim, the geranium in the window, the smell of mama's medicines. And then he walked in, and it was different! He clomped through the place like he was still outdoors. <strong>There was a man in the place </strong>and it seemed good!</p> <hr width="30%" /> <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">Somehow this dialog above—which IMDb has thankfully transcribed for us —really strikes a chord with me. You wonder what was on the mind of the playwright <a href="http://www.washburn.edu/reference/cks/mapping/inge/index.html">William Inge</a>, when he came up with that line from the neighbor lady, Helen Potts (Verna Felton): "There was a man in the place and it seemed good!" What the author is saying, I believe, is not <em>contra</em> women, rather <em>pro</em> LIFE: life as manifested by a man in full, capturing and being captured by the heart of a woman equally passionate and in tune. <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">In perhaps the most compact yet convincing love story in movie history—between Hal Carter (William Holden) and Madge Owens (Kim Novak)—<a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0767827791/?tag=thecofcoa-20"><em>Picnic</em></a> seems to be breaking its slice-of-life chains: by showing that love makes life worthwhile. Indeed, love <em>is</em> life. Yet the author/playwright doesn't take the easy way out by giving us the happily-ever-after stroll into the sunshine. We don't know what will happen, and Inge is shrewd to lay the cards out so either a positive hopeful outcome or a negative doubtful outcome is likely. The interpretation is ours to make. <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">Marvelous. <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">Naturally, I'm opting for the hopeful outcome. But not because of any Pollyanna instincts. Rather, like a picnic, we tend to see the best and worst of people enjoying themselves, but it is a celebration of life. What does life entail for the great majority? Well, ordinary stuff. Keeping up with the Joneses, finding someone who is at least not unpleasant for long periods, taking care of the children, working at a tolerable job, etc. In other words, most people—and the people in this Small Town, Kansas—"settle." Not in such a bad way; the author is gentle about it: <blockquote> <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">Madge's aunt Sidney (Rosalind Russell) is the fading-beauty, 40-something schoolmarm who longs to feel the romance and adventure of her youth, but now has come to a decision point on whether to go ahead and attract Howad Bevans (Arthur O'Connell) to wed her. For his part, Howard has gotten accustomed to his freedom and wonders if it's worth a trade for female companionship at close quarters. Blossoming teenager Millie Owens (Susan Strasberg) is unsure of herself, especially beside the voluptuousness of her sister, Madge. She becomes an egghead and a social ciritic, but we see right through it. Millie wants to find the same sweet center of life as her aunt Sidney longingly describes. </p> <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">And on the other side of the tracks, we find Hal's college buddy, Alan Benson (Cliff Robertson), the son of a <em>nouveau riche</em> wheat tycoon (Raymond Bailey). Alan and Madge are lined up to be married, and he's absolultely head-over-heels crazy about her, but she demurs. As she puts it later in the story, no one looks at her beyond her looks. She's typecast by physical beauty, and Alan—as most men, and most people for that matter—completely lacks any sensitivity toward the creative soul that lies beneath. Don't forget we're still a decade away from Betty Friedan's <em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0393322572/?tag=thecofcoa-20">Feminine Mystique</a></em>, i.e. away from the notion that women are people, too. </p> <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">Alan has a good heart, but has been battered his entire life about living up to his old man's expectations, which, by the way, do not include having Alan hook up with Madge. So in that respect, you can see Alan as willing to buck the system. [But if it came down to being disowned if he married her, I expect Alan would cave.] So Alan and the rest of the featured townspeople are pretty much going through the motions, filling a role they've been given. And into town comes Hal. As Helen Potts puts it, all of a sudden the world has color... reminiscent of the movie <a href="http://brianrwright.com/Coffee_Coaster/02_Movie_Reviews/2007/070907_Pleasantville.htm"><em>Pleasantville</em></a>. </p> </blockquote> <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">Is William Holden the best they could do? Interestingly, Paul Newman's first big role on Broadway was in William Inge's play, Picnic. I'm not putting Mr. Holden down, but I do think Newman would have been more fitting. There seems to be a frenetic quality in Holden's self-deprecating scenes as Hal. Perhaps he was simply doing as the director directed, but the real Hal Carter would have been more method. Less talky in general. Still the base message comes through: Hal is a work in progress, and the work keeps getting derailed by short-term considerations. Unlike the others, it's the <strong><em>fear</em></strong> of settling that seems to drive Hal. <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">Until he meets Madge. Until he <strong><em>dances with</em></strong> Madge. <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">Sure there are some age-old conventions at work here in the playwright's tool chest, but the movie manages to ascend to the level of magic in that oh-so-short sequence—following a dramatic blowup from Millie and Aunt Sidney—as Hal and Madge touch and weave and take each other in with the purest of physical harmony, at night, by the lake, away from the milling crowd of the picnic. This is why anyone wants to be alive. To feel the heat and see the light in the arms of that special someone. Holden and Novak are the only ones I ever envision in this special scene. <hr width="30%" /> <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">How wonderful to pass this way again on <em>Picnic</em>. I'd really only viewed a view sequences when it would come on TV through the 1970s onward. It has a conventional look, with movie stars (pretty people). But when you actually sit down and view the whole thing—and I would love to see the play—you realize there is so much to it. Outstanding and a classic. <p align="justify" id="paragraph_column_main">By the way you will probably recognize the theme from <em>Picnic</em>, played here in <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mYi0qJ6qhk">the song by the McGuire Sisters</a>. The music was written by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Duning" title="George Duning">George Duning</a>, and the lyrics were written by <a href="http://www.amazon.com/dp/0767827791/?tag=thecofcoa-20" title="Steve Allen">Steve Allen</a>. When I was watching the movie the other night, I knew I had heard the theme—only the instrumental portion is in the film—many times before. It's always cool to connect a well-known cultural tune to its origins. I also want to observe that the melody, moreso than the lyrics, has a wistful, even slightly haunting quality... like the movie itself. <hr width="30%" /> <p align="center" id="paragraph_column_main">### <br /> <em>2010 September 02 <br /> Copyright © Brian Wright | The Coffee Coaster™<br /> </em> <em>Picnic | William Holden | Kim Novak | William Inge | 1950s realism </em></p> <p id="bottomforad"> <OBJECT classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/swflash.cab" id="Player_ea12f224-068d-4045-907d-b4326bbf307f" WIDTH="400px" HEIGHT="150px"> <PARAM NAME="movie" VALUE="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2Fea12f224-068d-4045-907d-b4326bbf307f&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate"><PARAM NAME="quality" VALUE="high"><PARAM NAME="bgcolor" VALUE="#FFFFFF"><PARAM NAME="allowscriptaccess" VALUE="always"><embed src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2Fea12f224-068d-4045-907d-b4326bbf307f&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" id="Player_ea12f224-068d-4045-907d-b4326bbf307f" quality="high" bgcolor="#ffffff" name="Player_ea12f224-068d-4045-907d-b4326bbf307f" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" align="middle" height="150px" width="400px"></embed></OBJECT> <div align="center"><A HREF="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2F83371747-553c-4426-94d5-2971fed4a52e&Operation=NoScript">Amazon.com Widgets</A></div> </td> <td width="133" rowspan="2" align="center" valign="top"><p> <a href="http://www.brianrwright.com/mainfeed.rss"><img src="/Assets/Images/CC_General/RSSDreamFeeder.jpg" width="132" height="21" border ="00" /></a><br /> <p><script src="http://connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"></script><fb:like layout="box_count" font="verdana"></fb:like></p> <p><script src="http://digg.com/tools/diggthis.js" type="text/javascript"></script></p><p><a href="http://www.bwright-millionaire.com" title="MX Fast Money Success System"><img src="http://mxfastmoney.com/banners/006.gif" alt="MX Fast Money Success System :: Banner 06" border="0" /></a></p><p><script src="http://www.stumbleupon.com/hostedbadge.php?s=5"></script></p><p><form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post"> <input type="hidden" name="cmd" value="_s-xclick"> <input type="hidden" name="hosted_button_id" value="6QAMZ6EYLE5RS"> <input type="image" src="https://www.paypal.com/en_US/i/btn/btn_donateCC_LG.gif" border="0" name="submit" alt="PayPal - The safer, easier way to pay online!"> <img alt="" border="0" src="https://www.paypal.com/en_US/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" height="1"> </form> <p> <iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thecofcoa-20&o=1&p=20&l=ur1&category=magazines&banner=0GT4H39AHQ3SWJDVCZ82&f=ifr" width="120" height="90" scrolling="no" border="0" marginwidth="0" style="border:none;" frameborder="0"></iframe></p> <p align="center"> <object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/swflash.cab" id="Player_c44d0d10-8623-4900-a085-42c024939354" width="120px" height="500px"> <param name="movie" value="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2Fc44d0d10-8623-4900-a085-42c024939354&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" /> <param name="quality" value="high" /> <param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /> <embed src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2Fc44d0d10-8623-4900-a085-42c024939354&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" id="Player_c44d0d10-8623-4900-a085-42c024939354" quality="high" bgcolor="#ffffff" name="Player_c44d0d10-8623-4900-a085-42c024939354" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" align="middle" height="500px" width="120px"></embed> </object> <noscript> <a href="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2Fd95317e0-221a-43a1-93a5-8597950e8fe2&Operation=NoScript">Amazon.com Widgets</a> </noscript> </p> <p>  <a href="http://brianrwright.com/BrianRWright/Professional_Services/BWrightWorks.html"><img src="/Professional_Services_Block.png" alt="Brian Wright Professional Services" width="124" height="197" border="0" /></a></p> <p> <object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/swflash.cab" id="Player_bc6cd04a-8b31-49ba-b73a-63a4a93d5b7b" width="120px" height="500px"> <param name="movie" value="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2Fbc6cd04a-8b31-49ba-b73a-63a4a93d5b7b&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" /> <param name="quality" value="high" /> <param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /> <embed src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2Fbc6cd04a-8b31-49ba-b73a-63a4a93d5b7b&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" id="Player_bc6cd04a-8b31-49ba-b73a-63a4a93d5b7b" quality="high" bgcolor="#ffffff" name="Player_bc6cd04a-8b31-49ba-b73a-63a4a93d5b7b" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" align="middle" height="500px" width="120px"></embed> </object> </p> <noscript> <a href="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2F00b15060-a1b0-46d7-a42b-656fba104b89&Operation=NoScript">Amazon.com Widgets</a> </noscript> </p> <p> <object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/swflash.cab" id="Player_9a242339-0e53-408d-8211-8d366d575210" width="120px" height="500px"> <param name="movie" value="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2F9a242339-0e53-408d-8211-8d366d575210&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" /> <param name="quality" value="high" /> <param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /> <embed src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2F9a242339-0e53-408d-8211-8d366d575210&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" id="Player_9a242339-0e53-408d-8211-8d366d575210" quality="high" bgcolor="#ffffff" name="Player_9a242339-0e53-408d-8211-8d366d575210" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" align="middle" height="500px" width="120px"></embed> </object> </p> <noscript> <p><a href="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2F3ef30a31-bf6a-4ca0-8468-43f578e52bfe&Operation=NoScript">Amazon.com Widgets</a></p> </noscript> <NOSCRIPT></NOSCRIPT></td> </tr> <tr> <td height="2272" align="left" valign="top"><p align="center"><a href="http://www.infowars.com"><img src="http://www.infowars.com/activism/images/infowars_120x90.gif" alt="Infowars" width="120" height="90" border="0" /></a><br /><br /> <a href="http://www.rockcreekfreepress.com/"> <img src="/Assets/Images/CC_General/Rock_Creek.gif" alt="Rock Creek Free Press" width="120" height="94" border="0" /></a></p> <p align="center"><a href="http://www.newhampshirefreepress.com/"><img src="/Assets/Images/CC_General/NHFreePress.gif" alt="New Hampshire Free Press" width="120" height="96" border="0" /></a></p> <p align="center"><a href="http://nhcompassion.org/"><img src="Assets/Images/CC_General/NHCommonSense.gif" alt="NH Common Sense" width="118" height="80" border="0" /></a></p> <p align="center"><a href="http://freestateproject.org/"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Connections/Friends_Heroes_Images/FSP_Porcupine.jpg" alt="FSP_Porc" width="120" height="108" border="0" /></a></p> <p align="center"><a href="http://www.fija.org/"><img src="/Assets/Images/CC_Connections/Friends_Heroes_Images/FullyInformedJury.png" alt="FIJA" width="116" height="87" border="0" /></a></p> <p align="center"><a href="http://www.911truth.org/"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/CC_Connections/Friends_Heroes_Images/911truth_Org.jpg" alt="911Truth_org" width="116" height="101" border="0" /></a></p> <p align="center"><a href="http://www.bwright-millionaire.com" title="MX Fast Money Success System"><img src="http://mxfastmoney.com/banners/006.gif" alt="MX Fast Money Success System :: Banner 06" border="0" /></a></p> <p align="center"> <iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thecofcoa-20&o=1&p=29&l=ur1&category=magazines&banner=0R178DHZBEE06ZE13CR2&f=ifr" width="120" height="600" scrolling="No" border="0" marginwidth="0" style="border:none;" frameborder="0"></iframe> </p> <p align="center"><a href="http://www.thehia.org/">Hemp Industries <br /> <img src="/Assets/Images/CC_Connections/Friends_Heroes_Images/TheHIA.png" width="119" height="83" border="0" /></a><p><a href="http://www.mx1bw.com/"><img src="http://brianrwright.com/Files/MX1_Button.jpg" width="118" height="106" border="0" /></a></p></p> <p align="center"> <object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/get/flashplayer/current/swflash.cab" id="Player_9f8546e1-3468-4151-9e37-843ec2a046d4" width="120px" height="500px"> <param name="movie" value="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2F9f8546e1-3468-4151-9e37-843ec2a046d4&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" /> <param name="quality" value="high" /> <param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /> <param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /> <embed src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2F9f8546e1-3468-4151-9e37-843ec2a046d4&Operation=GetDisplayTemplate" id="Player_9f8546e1-3468-4151-9e37-843ec2a046d4" quality="high" bgcolor="#ffffff" name="Player_9f8546e1-3468-4151-9e37-843ec2a046d4" allowscriptaccess="always" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" align="middle" height="500px" width="120px"></embed> </object> </p> <div align="center"> <NOSCRIPT> <A HREF="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2Fthecofcoa-20%2F8010%2Fdd96abb5-9988-4e44-a271-737678008c9d&Operation=NoScript">Amazon.com Widgets</A> </NOSCRIPT> </div></td> </tr> </table> <table width="844" height="83" border="0" cellpadding="5"> <tr> <td width="134" rowspan="2" align="center" valign="middle"><form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post"> <input type="hidden" name="cmd" value="_s-xclick"> <input type="hidden" name="hosted_button_id" value="6QAMZ6EYLE5RS"> <input type="image" src="https://www.paypal.com/en_US/i/btn/btn_donateCC_LG.gif" border="0" name="submit" alt="PayPal - The safer, easier way to pay online!"> <img alt="" border="0" src="https://www.paypal.com/en_US/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" height="1"> </form></td> <td width="130" rowspan="2"><a href="100826_Shawshank.htm"><img src="/Assets/Images/Navigation/PrevMovie.jpg" width="126" height="52" border="0" /></a></td> <td width="250" align="right" id="bottom_table"><div align="center" class="style4"><a href="http://brianrwright.com/CoffeeCoasterBlog/index.php">Coffee Coaster Blog </a></div></td> <td width="123" rowspan="2" align="right"><div align="right"><a href="/Coffee_Coaster/02_Movie_Reviews/2008/080328_Amateurs.htm"></a><a href="100728_Answer_Man.htm"></a><a href="100915_Graduate.htm"><img src="../../../Assets/Images/Navigation/NextMov.jpg" width="100" height="52" border="0" /></a></div></td> <td width="145" rowspan="2" align="right"><a href="../Copy of 2009/Movies_PDF/091231_Invictus.pdf"></a><a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/28288280/500-Days-of-Summer-Movie-Review-by-Brian-Wright"></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td width="250" height="47" align="center" id="bottom_table"><span class="style4"> </span><a href="mailto:brian@brianrwright.com"><img src="http://brianrwright.com/Assets/Images/CC_Main_Page/Syndication_Tab.jpg" width="192" height="31" border="0" /></a></td> </tr> </table> <p align="center"> <iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=thecofcoa-20&o=1&p=13&l=ur1&category=magazines&banner=15SW3B6B66EM2QJNRER2&f=ifr" width="468" height="60" scrolling="no" border="0" marginwidth="0" style="border:none;" frameborder="0"></iframe> </NOSCRIPT> </p> <div align="center"><span class="style10"><br /> <span class="style8"><a href="http://www.brianrwright.com/Coffee_Coaster/index.htm">Main</a> | <a href="http://www.brianrwright.com/Coffee_Coaster/01_Columns/All_Columns.htm">Columns</a> | <a href="http://www.brianrwright.com/Coffee_Coaster/02_Movie_Reviews/All_Movies.htm">Movie Reviews</a> | <a href="http://www.brianrwright.com/Coffee_Coaster/03_Book_Reviews/All_Book_Reviews.htm">Book Reviews</a> | <a href="http://www.brianrwright.com/Coffee_Coaster/04_Articles/All_Articles.htm">Articles</a> | <a href="http://www.brianrwright.com/Coffee_Coaster/06_Guest/All_Guest.htm">Guest</a></span></span> </div> </div> <p class="big"> </p> <script type="text/javascript"> var gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://ssl." : "http://www."); document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + gaJsHost + "google-analytics.com/ga.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E")); </script> <script type="text/javascript"> try { var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-15268194-1"); pageTracker._setDomainName(".brianrwright.com"); pageTracker._trackPageview(); } catch(err) {}</script></body> </html>