This refreshingly bitter and raw-edged relationship dramedy showcases Natalie Wood in her best screen performance (and at her most gorgeous, to boot).
She and Steve McQueen play antagonistic lovers who get pregnant before they know each other very well, and proceed to make a life together, becoming acquainted along the way. Director Robert Mulligan gives the film a gritty and realistic patina -- this is no idealized studio image of New York. It's strong and unique stuff for 1963, a time of transition in American film from Hollywood gloss to art-house realism.
Grade: A-
She and Steve McQueen play antagonistic lovers who get pregnant before they know each other very well, and proceed to make a life together, becoming acquainted along the way. Director Robert Mulligan gives the film a gritty and realistic patina -- this is no idealized studio image of New York. It's strong and unique stuff for 1963, a time of transition in American film from Hollywood gloss to art-house realism.
Grade: A-