Watch Sons and Lovers

Sons and Lovers is a 1960 drama directed by Jack Cardiff, and based on the novel of the same name by D.H. Lawrence. The film is set in early 20th-century England and tells the story of a conflicted young man, Paul Morel (Dean Stockwell), and his complex relationship with his mother, Gertrude (Wendy Hiller), and other women in his life.

The film opens with the Morel family living in a small coal-mining town in England. Walter Morel (Trevor Howard) is a coal miner who is unhappy with his job and his life. Gertrude is a strong-willed and passionate woman who dreams of a better life for her family. Despite their differences, the couple has several children together, including Paul, who is the oldest.

From an early age, Paul is drawn to the arts and literature, which makes him an outcast in the rough and tumble world of his small town. He seeks refuge in books and music, and he begins to distance himself from his father and his working-class upbringing. At the same time, Paul is deeply attached to his mother, who he sees as the embodiment of all that is good and pure in the world.

As Paul grows older, he becomes increasingly conflicted about his feelings for his mother. He resents her for holding him back from pursuing his dreams, but he also relies on her for emotional support. Gertrude, meanwhile, is torn between her love for her son and her desire for him to be strong and independent. She also struggles with her own desires, as she begins to feel a sexual attraction to a family friend, Mr. Leivers (Ernest Thesiger).

The tension between mother and son comes to a head when Paul falls in love with a young woman named Miriam Leivers (Mary Ure). Miriam is an intelligent and sensitive woman who shares Paul's love of literature and the arts. However, their relationship is complicated by Paul's unresolved feelings for his mother, and by Miriam's own insecurities and emotional issues.

Over the course of the film, Paul struggles to come to terms with his conflicted feelings and to find his place in the world. He is torn between his desire to live up to his mother's expectations and his own dreams of artistic and intellectual fulfillment. Along the way, he also must navigate the complicated relationships he has with other women in his life, including Miriam, his mother's friend Clara (Heather Sears), and a married woman named Mrs. Dawes (Anne Firbank).

Sons and Lovers is a powerful and emotionally complex film that explores themes of love, desire, and identity. The performances by the cast are outstanding, particularly Dean Stockwell as Paul and Wendy Hiller as Gertrude. The film is beautifully shot, with vivid and evocative imagery that captures the mood of the time and the place.

Overall, Sons and Lovers is a classic drama that examines the intricate and often painful dynamics of family relationships. The film is both timeless and timely, and its themes of love, identity, and self-discovery resonate just as strongly today as they did when the film was made over 60 years ago.

Sons and Lovers is a 1960 drama with a runtime of 1 hour and 43 minutes. It has received mostly positive reviews from critics and viewers, who have given it an IMDb score of 7.1.