Summer Storm

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Audience Member Russian peasant girl uses men to advance her social status. Sirk film based on Chekhov's Shooting Party. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/10/23 Full Review Audience Member Early american Sirk film is a little slow but still interesting version of Chekov's The Shooting Party. His signature stylistic elements are not wholly in evidence yet although he uses shadows effectively and he gets excellent work from his cast particularly Edward Everett Horton playing a more complex part then usual. Linda Darnell is also most impressive in the first of the bad girl roles in which she excelled, she is almost supernaturally beautiful. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Audience Member 2.5: It definitely doesn't start out like any Sirk film I'd ever previously seen and the trend continues all the way through. This has something to do with both the lack of color and the Russian setting. I wouldn't call myself a Sirk expert by any means, but his work obviously varies a bit more widely than I realized. The story does seem to be overflowing with repressed feelings, regret, and passion though, which fits perfectly with Sirk's ouvere. Still, seeing a Sirk picture adapted from a Chekhov novel and set from 1912-1919 in Russia seems odd. I associate Sirk more with the 1950's and American social commentary. Using vibrant and powerful color to denote overpowering emotions is a definitive attribute of his later work as well, but he doesn't have that option here. The costumes are perhaps the most ridiculous aspect of the film, but this isn't the only element that makes the picture stick out as a product of the studio system. It still bears witness to the unique Sirk style, but he obviously doesn't have the kind of creative freedom here that he enjoyed in later years. I'm surprised Sirk cowrote the script. The picture was an extreme disappointment for me though. I'm not a fan of any of the actors and I thought some actually gave poor performances. Their styles are not particularly well suited to Sirk's, which creates a conflict where there should be none. The story was a bit too predictable, but the final minute or two make it worthwhile. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Summer Storm

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