Gone with the Wind

 
No fart jokes, honest
Genre: War Romance Drama Epic

Starring: Vivien Leigh (A Streetcar Named Desire • Anna Karenina), Clark Gable (It Happened One Night • Mutiny On The
Bounty)

Directed By: Victor Fleming (Captains Courageous • The Wizard of Oz)

Overview: This is the epic American classic that takes us through the south during the civil war and it's reformation. We see the whirlwind life of the strong-willed Scarlet O'Hara as well as her love affair with Rhett Butler, a rich if unscrupulous man.

The other critics of the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die Club are all in agreement. Gone With the Wind is more than an epic film, it's a true definition of larger-than-life cinema, and after a viewing there is no doubt that it has earned its place as top grossing movie ever. Of course it comes as no surprise that today it still sits proudly as one of IMDb's top 250 films, at number 157 to be exact, as well as being number 4 on AFI's Favorite Movies Of The Last 100 Years, right between The Godfather and Lawrence Of Arabia. With the Academy Awards for Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Cinematography, Best Director, and, of course, best film under its belt, Gone With The Wind doesn't really need an argument for a watch or yet another rewatch. This epic film is as classic as they get. Rather than going into the plot of the turgid love affair between Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler, which you most likely know already, I thought I'd talk about how Gone With The Wind holds up today and the milestones it achieved, most notably in the form of Hattie McDaniel.

Tara? Don't you know that they've been fighting all day around Tara? Do you think you can parade right through the Yankee army with a sick woman, a baby and simply minded darkie? Or do you intend leaving them behind? - Rhett Butle

What I find most interesting about Gone With the Wind is how well it holds up for sheer dramatic value, especially as it pertains to impropriety and the soiled 'family values' extolled by Rhett and Scarlett. Add dialogue like the one quoted above and you find scenes that a writer couldn't get away with today unless his name was Tarantino. Scarlett is more than a fiery character. She's violent, disgraceful, and as unscrupulous as the Rhett Butler she pines for and suffers with. In context of the era they live in, the audience feels the shame that Scarlett should feel but ignores. In context of today looking back at the mores of 1939, while watching scenes where blacks act and speak in a most stereotypical uneducated manner, are routinely called darkies and even beaten, it's an engrossing gander into the past. 


Speaking of civil right milestones, let us move on to the 12th Annual Academy awards. Hattie McDaniel was the first African American to be nominated for an Oscar, in 1940. She was more than overjoyed at becoming the first African American Oscar winner for her supporting role as Mammy, the slave house servant to Scarlett O'Hara. Although Hattie went onstage and made an eloquent speech of thanks, special guest that she was, she and her husband spent that magical evening at the Ambassador Hotel in the segregated 'Blacks Only' ballroom. 
 

Last updated: 2010-08-05 08:26:41 by user07

Scarlet is grown from the red clay of Tara, emotionally barren like the plundered estate, an empty vessel that echoes of existential despair. Director Victor Fleming (thanks to George Cukor’s exhaustive pre-production) captures the spirit of the Ante-Bellum South through a romanticized polemic where slavery is defined as “house servant” and entitlement is a truism.

Scarlet is a spoiled rich girl who marries out of spite and greed, her existence an egoistic vendetta against all her perceived enemies: problem is, she hurts those who love her despite this major character flaw, and she is strength without heart. This is her story but she is not the compassionate link in the complex chain of events: Melanie Hamilton and the housemaid Mammy are the heart and soul of the tale. Melanie is caring and good natured, self-sacrificing and committed, and she knows of Scarlet’s faults (and her obsession) but sticks by her side. Though she never expresses her insecurities, Melanie’s determination is more than familial responsibility or obligation: she hopes to help Scarlet change...but will love her nonetheless if she fails. Mammy is the voice of logic and reason, her intrepid wisdom speaking volumes to the inane gossips of her “employer”. But Mammy is more than duty bound also; she loves Scarlet and hopes to see her finally grow up. Rhett Butler is a scoundrel, but he is man who eventually changes through the vicious conflict…he develops a conscience. Scarlet fights her own Civil War and in her mind she is the winner; only there is no one else playing her game. By the film’s end, she gets exactly what she deserves.

The film is a Technicolor marvel as the beautiful visuals bleed from the screen, creating a heightened sense of reality. Flemings use of matte paintings for extreme long shots establish the bloody and burning battlefield littered with corpses, which make this egocentric melodrama attain epic proportions. The costumes and set designs are magnificent; from the wonderfully choreographed Gala in the first act to the crane shot of dying Confederates in the Atlanta rail yard. Max Steiner’s score is married to the narrative, its swelling strings and harmonies creating an emotional tsunami that punctuates the drama…and pulls the heartstrings.

Though GONE WITH THE WIND is not a political movie, Scarlet becomes a cipher for the flawed values and vanity of a civilization that has evaporated in a tempest. Final Grade: (A)

All reviews copyright Korova, Ltd. Visit Alex at his Home Theatre Blog, http://korovatheatrepresents.blogspot.com/

Last updated: 2010-02-26 20:16:26 by AlexDelarge

Last updated: 2010-01-18 14:35:16 by malikaziz