Youth Buried by the Times: Elia Kazan's 'Splendor in the Grass'

There are films that, for some reason, have remained in the depths of my heart ever since I first saw them.

Even if I forget the details of the story little by little, the heart-wrenching sadness alone never fades. That film is Elia Kazan's 'Splendor in the Grass' (1961).

《Staff》
◎Director/Producer: Elia Kazan
◎Screenplay: William Inge
◎Cinematography: Boris Kaufman
◎Music: David Amram
◎Editor: Gene Milford
《Cast》
◎Natalie Wood
◎Warren Beatty
◎Audrey Christie
◎Fred Stewart

The author Haruki Murakami once wrote, 'Whenever I think of this film, I always feel sad.'

I understand that feeling well. 'Splendor in the Grass' is not just a film about the love between a young man and a woman. It is a work that quietly observes how deeply loving someone does not necessarily lead to happiness, and how much the times and values can sway a person's life.

The original story and screenplay are by playwright William Inge, known for 'Picnic' and 'Bus Stop.' It is an original work inspired by the poem by English poet William Wordsworth.

The setting is 1920s Kansas.
High school students Deanie (Natalie Wood) and Bud (Warren Beatty) were lovers who loved each other deeply.

However, there was a strict moral code in society at that time. The pure-hearted Deanie suffered between her feelings of love and the values instilled in her by her mother, and her heart was gradually driven into a corner. Bud, too, was bound by his father's expectations and could not follow his own true feelings.

Despite being in love, the two slowly drifted apart, and eventually, Deanie reached her mental breaking point and was hospitalized.

After that, the era headed toward the Great Depression, and their lives changed significantly.
And when they reunited years later, what flowed between them was not the intense love of the past, but a quiet time of accepting their respective lives.

There is one scene in this film that I can never forget. It is the scene where Deanie reads William Wordsworth's poem in class.

'Though nothing can bring back the hour / Of splendor in the grass, of glory in the flower; / We will grieve not, rather find / Strength in what remains behind.'

This poem was originally intended to sing of the hope that the lost splendor of youth can also become sustenance for life. But for Deanie, who was in the midst of her youth, those words were too cruel. At an age when she did not want to think about losing anything, she was told that 'the splendor will not return.'

In that moment, her heart began to break quietly.

Looking at it from today's values, one might wonder why the two had to suffer so much. However, in 1920s America, purity was strongly demanded of women, and a father's expectations and 'manliness' were demanded of men. Both Deanie and Bud had no choice but to prioritize social norms over their own hearts within the values of that era.

Elia Kazan does not over-explain emotions, but instead brings the characters' inner lives to the surface through the actors' expressions, silences, and the flow of the atmosphere; that restrained direction leaves a deep, lingering impression on the viewer's heart.

What is particularly impressive is that the process of Deanie's heart slowly crumbling is never dramatically exaggerated, but quietly accumulated. It is because of that restrained direction that the pain of this story is conveyed even more vividly.

The two leads are also truly magnificent.

Natalie Wood delicately plays purity and fragility, and even the fluctuations of a heart that cannot be put into words are expressed through her expressions alone.

Meanwhile, Warren Beatty naturally expresses the precariousness of a young man who is bound by his father's and society's values while struggling with his own emotions.

It is precisely because of these two that this love remains in our hearts not merely as a tragic romance, but as the very embodiment of youth tossed about by the times.

Their love was never a lie. It was not that they lost their love, either. Yet, the immense forces of family and society, which they could not resist, tore that love apart.

I believe 'Splendor in the Grass' is the story of two people who, despite loving each other, had to bury their youth within the era and values of their time.

However, this film does not end by depicting only tragedy. When they reunite, they do not attempt to reclaim the lost time. Instead, they accept their respective lives and quietly wish for each other's happiness.

Watching them, I cannot help but feel that Deanie has finally come to understand the meaning of the Wordsworth poem she recited that day.

The splendor of youth does not return. Yet, the memories of it are not lost. People carry what they have lost in their hearts, and yet, they continue to live, looking forward.

'Splendor in the Grass' is not a film that merely reminisces about youthful love; it is a work that quietly depicts the strength and poignancy of human beings who accept lost time and continue to walk through life.

The days of loving too much will never return. Even so, the power hidden deep within those memories becomes a support for living.

That is why I believe this film continues to quietly stir the hearts of many, even now, more than half a century later.