"That Certain Summer" was more than just one of 1972's best productions made expressly for television. It was an outstanding presentation by any standard and for any medium. The entire cast, crew, and production team worked in fine ensemble fashion to create a memorable and significant achievement. This deserves to be revived and widely offered on video.
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harry-7627 June 2001
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Well-made TV-movie, largely acknowledged as the first made-for-television film to tackle the subject of homosexuality, has divorced San Francisco contractor Hal Holbrook looking forward to a visit from his fourteen-year-old son who lives out in Los Angeles with his mother; things are shaky when the kid meets his dad's new male friend, and once he figures out that Pop enjoys this male companion more so than eligible women, he runs away in anger and confusion. Levinson/Link production won raves upon its first network showing, and indeed it is smart, focused, and without stereotypes. Still, when the kid runs away (for a large section of the film), precious time on the clock is wasted as the adults search for him and worry. The film isn't melodramatic, thankfully; it's brave, it has a thoughtful, melancholy undermining, and the gay theme is served well (only some of the dialogue dates it). But more courageous the whole thing might have been with more hearty talk and less shame and tears.
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hslev20 January 2007I saw this at the Museum of Radio and Television (don't think it's available on DVD). I had first seen it as what now called a "questioning" young man in 1972 (the son's character was 14, I was 13 at the time) and remembered it being very important to me as the first sensitive, non- judgmental portrayal of gay men on television. I particularly remembered the poise of a very young Martin Sheen. Viewing it again after 35 years it was almost as affecting, with wonderful acting by a very strong ensemble cast, with Hope Lange a stand-out as the mother/ex-wife. I enjoyed the early-70s touches (shag carpeting in the bathroom, 8-track cassettes) but realized that -- despite so many advances in gay rights over the years -- it could almost be re-made today and still make sense. Cross your fingers that this someday is available on DVD.
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This movie came out when I was 17 years old. I remember watching it and at the same time hoping that my parents weren't paying attention or they would have changed the channel. I remember one scene at the park on the band stand. I was struggling with my own sexuality and this movie gave me a peek at the idea that not every gay person was some Nelly queen. That a gay person could look like everyone else and be just like anyone in the world doing any kind of work. I spent years waiting for this movie to be re-released and I am still waiting. I'm 52 years old now when will ABC realize that they can step up to plate and show how progressive they were and can be again. I would like to share this movie with many of those who are in need of role models as shown in the movie. RE-RELEASE THE MOVIE!!! it was life changing for me and I would love to see it before I leave this world just once more. It was and is important.
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surfbumxx15 January 2001Hal Holbrook is excellent. Martin Sheen is excellent. The story line is very touching. Hal Holbrook's son does not know his father is gay when he first comes for his annual summer visit. His live in lover, Martin Sheen, moves out during the visit and moves in with his very liberal minded sister and brother-in-law. One of the most memorable exchanges for me, takes place between Martin Sheen and his sister when she tells him how much she understands his lifestyle. His response is unexpected but very right on! The son learns accidently about his father and runs away but befriends a cablecar operator who helps him sort things out. Hope Lange is the perfect ex-wife. Great movie. I wish ABC would re-release it!
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I am reminded of this serious 1972 TV movie as a result of the newly released film, Brokeback Mountain. I was only 18 at the time, but the Holbrook/Sheen/Lange movie stayed with me for all these years. I think I still have a crush on Martin Sheen in his turtleneck sweater. All three leads in the movie did an excellent job. The movie seemed so serious and rather dark at the time. I just wish we could have talked more about the subject matter back then. It was one of those TV movies that just "disappeared" from site or discussion group comments. (Thank goodness for VHS and DVDs!) I am not aware of any reruns of this movie...ever. I'm sure someone will use it in a documentary some day.
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nwadoug16 November 2005That Certain Summer must have been ground breaking for a 1972 audience. Today I saw the film for the first time, and am duly impressed. Too bad it's not available for sale on DVD, or video. Well done stories about homosexuality are difficult to find. This one is well worth seeing! As That Certain Summer was done before the intrusion of AIDS, the film can only focus on homosexuality itself, not on the complexities of gay people reacting to crisis.
Fortunately LOGO is showing That Certain Summer, and other similarly good films. That Certain Summer is comparable to the qualities found in Long Time Companion, and As Is.
I recommend it! -
bkoganbing2 February 2021Very post Stonewall, That Certain Summer is a sensitive treatment of a story where teem Scott Jacoby discovers that the reason for his parents divorce is that he left mother Hope Lange for a man. Hal Holbrook plays the father and the other man is Martin Sheen.
This four character drama goes in equal measure to Holbrook, Sheen, Jacoby, and Lange. The three adults are figuring that it's time for Jacoby to learn the truth of things and are figuring the best way to go about it.
Sheen's character is an interesting one and less discussed. As he points out up to now when Jacoby visits his dad, Sheen clears out of the home of the home he and Holbrook have made for themselves. Naturally he resents this as if he and Holbrook are doing something wrong. We get a thoughtful presentation from Lange from the view of the wronged woman as to what she could have done to save her marriage.
Sadly there are still too many places on this earth that the worst thing in the world to be thought of is being gay. Some of the best television drama you'll ever see is the moment of truth when Holbrook confesses to Jacoby his sexual orientation.
That Certain Summer is one of the best made for TV dramas out there. Hopefully we'll get to see it again and soon. -
That Certain Summer is way ahead of it's time for the year 1972.I did not see the movie when it originally aired in 1972. I had not even heard of the movie until I received this movie on VHS tape from a collector.I watched it a couple of nights ago, and I was amazed at the subject matter for the year 1972.First off, the cast was excellent. Hal Holbrook, Hope Lange, Martin Sheen, and Scott Jacoby were just right for their roles.The scenery and setting of San Francisco added to the film's atmosphere.What I like best about the movie is the way that the story ended. The ending did not produce any certain answers for the family involved.The viewer can decide whether the family will make it through the heartache and hurt that all of them are experiencing.This movie was very well done,and is very tender and touching.I recommend this movie very much.I have this movie.
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jhkp2 September 2012One summer, a young teen says goodbye to his mom in LA and travels to San Francisco for a vacation with his dad. What he doesn't know is that his dad is gay and living with another man.
When Nick (Scott Jacoby) arrives in San Francisco, his dad, Doug (Hal Holbrook) and his dad's partner, Gary (Martin Sheen) have agreed to split up temporarily. Gary is staying with in-laws, but still spends time with Doug, and Nick has questions about their relationship. Eventually, Nick discovers the truth, and his dad tries to explain things. Nick, feeling confused and upset, runs away. When he doesn't return, his mom, Janet (Hope Lange) comes up from LA.
Eventually, Nick does come back. But not before there are several memorable interactions between the three adult principals.
The entire film seems to work on the principle that less is more. Though covering a controversial subject at the time, the movie is far from sensationalistic. It's subtle, quiet, almost uneventful. Yet it packs an emotional punch, substituting taste and simplicity for melodrama.
The acting is very good, so is the writing and direction. The only flaw is in a speech Doug makes to Nick, which has some lines that were inserted at the request of the network, and which the authors strongly objected to. Doug is made to say that many people consider homosexuality a sickness, and that, given a choice, he probably wouldn't choose to be gay. Even in the context of the time, the lines don't ring true, coming from a man seemingly secure and happy in his lifestyle and sexuality.
This was a groundbreaking drama. Seen today, it's obviously of its time. I saw it when it was on TV for the first time. I was 14. It's hard to believe so much has changed. TV was mostly still G rated. In real life, sex was still a taboo subject in many ways, not always discussed openly or casually. It's hard to explain how, at the time, things that are easier to talk about today were embarrassing or extremely difficult to discuss or acknowledge. Just in general, people often kept their feelings to themselves. Kids and parents didn't interact in the same way they do now. Some of this is reflected in the film, but I'm not sure younger people watching it will completely understand the motivations of the characters.
At any rate, if you get a chance to see That Certain Summer, I think you'll find it intelligent and involving, and maybe moving. -
I saw it when it was first broadcast--and some of it again when rerun a year or two later. It made me very squidgy. The principals and producers weren't really comfortable with the material and it showed. The only thread of the story that was credible was Hope Lange's distress at having her son (or adopted son?) suddenly find out about his father's (or adoptive father's?) live-in boyfriend.
Scott Jacoby was horrendously miscast. The only way Hope Lange and Hal Holbrook could have had this ugly, obnoxious kid was to have taken in the child of some (unrelated) friends. Perhaps the other couple got killed in an auto accident--who knows? Anyway, it would make sense for Hal and Hope not to have had any kids of their own, so this created a whole new backstory that was not explicitly dealt with in the script. Here they were stuck with this pushy brat, and bending over backwards to be nice to him and smooth over his ruffled feelings, and they always got bupkis for their trouble.
The pivotal scene was Martin Sheen bringing out the birthday cake ('but it's noawt moy boitday!' kvetches the brat) and then Sheen has to swallow endless abuse and innuendo from the little creep, who (let's face it) knew the score from the moment he saw his 'father' living in the same house with this other guy. This is another example of disjuncture between the actual script and the story as portrayed: the Scott Jacoby character is an up-to-date, crudely aware little wiseguy, but the director and adult actors are going around pretending he's this delicate flower who's had a sheltered life. I imagine that the kid was a past-master at subtle psychological blackmail. This new 'revelation' just gives him more ammunition. His poor adoptive parents!
And the moral is: Don't adopt a kid who's obviously not yours. You'll get no thanks! -
mark.waltz10 December 2020They ain't no boys in the band. No nasty party games, no hints of sexual promiscuity, just two men who love each other (Hal Holbrook and Martin Sheen) coming to grips with Holbrook's young son (Scott Jacoby) who discovers the truth and runs away. He's visiting Holbrook near San Francisco, unaware of the truth of why Holbrook divorced his mother (Hope Lange), and when he discovers the truth by accident, he's aghast. Is it from the lack of understanding or is he upset by the lack of honesty? This sensitive early TV movie delves deep into the mind of a teenager to try and understand a father he rarely sees.
Beautiful vintage photography of early 1970s San Francisco doesn't need to include a car chase like the ones in "What's Up Doc?" and "Foul Play" to be amazing. Lange as Holbrook's ex-wife is perhaps too perfectly understanding; no bitter former spouse she, just initial shock and fear over what happened to Jacoby. When she gets to meet Sheen, all she has to do is just look at him to express how she's feeling, and her confession of believing that she thought she could have changed Holbrook during their marriage is a sad example of a sense of thought that is a bit difficult to grasp nearly 50 years later.
As for the two male leads, this is a far different type of role than they've ever played, and they both do a good job in playing against type. Holbrook and Sheen do their best to avoid any stereotypes and their life together seems to be a happy one, something that needed to be expressed after "Staircase" and "Boys in the Band". It's not the oh so nice image that "Making Love" tried to accomplish a decade later, and having a youngster as part of the drama adds interesting conflict. This is far from perfect and certainly has some dated ideals, but for the timeline, it is a very important film that deserves the acclaim that it got and for the most part has stood the test of time. -
jimu6310 February 2003"That Certain Summer" is one of the all-time great TV movies. Even though I haven't seen it in maybe 15 years, it is forever seared into my memory as few films I have seen before or since.
***SPOILER ALERT***
Hal Holbrook plays a divorcee with a young son and a male lover, played by Martin Sheen. Although they have been together for several years, his son has no idea of his homosexuality, because, let's face it, you just didn't acknowledge such things thirty years ago. When the son comes to visit, Sheen moves out to protect his beloved, even though he thinks the boy should be told. The visit goes well until the boy finds evidence of his father's secret life and Holbrook realizes it's time to come clean. The final scene between father and son is absolutely heartbreaking in the simplicity of its emotion and honesty. And the look of shame and disgust on the boy's face is absolutely shattering. As is true in the best movies, little is resolved by the end.
Holbrook and Sheen are excellent as is to be expected, and Hope Lange lends credible support as the supportive ex-wife who married him because she thought she could "change" him. Her scene with Sheen is honest and perceptive. But the real find here is Scott Jacoby as the son. I believe he won an Emmy for this role, and if I'm right, it was well-deserved. Unfortunately, like many of his contemporary child actors, he followed this up with several terrific performances (my favorites--"Bad Ronald" and "The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane")before disappearing in the early eighties. Thank goodness today's Hollywood is more willing to let it's more talented child actors age gracefully into adulthood.
Suffice it to say this is a perfect film and deserves to find a life on home video. And considering society's aversion to anything gay at the time, it was incredibly brave of everyone involved to participate. Watch for this one on the late show. ***** (out of *****) -
ekaupa18 April 2006I don't know if I would still think this movie was worth 8 or not. I have tried to find it for years, to view it as an adult and see if I would like it as much! I can't imagine how it was stuck into anybodies lineup. The letters must have come pouring in from all the far right fundamentalists! It seemed to be a TV movie way ahead of the pack with it's sensitive angle, from son's perspective. Nobody was a bad guy. I was following Scott Jacoby's career at the time and thought he did a great job! While portraying homosexuals was a brave career move (back then) for both Hal and Martin, I thought Scott stole the show! I think this may have been the best thing he did as an actor.