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Gone With the Wind -
Having spent, well...quite a bit of time in Georgia, I somehow have never seen this movie until now. I'll just say that this is as scandalous around here as saying I've never been to the World of Coke or to a Bulldogs game. Now that I finally have, I'm glad I did because I really enjoyed it. I also appreciate finally learning why the movie is so popular and controversial.
First of all, if this movie did not invent the Hollywood epic, it might as well have. Half the joy of watching this is basking in its grandiosity, which made me understand why it is the biggest moneymaker of all time since it begs to be seen on the big screen. One moment in particular where the camera zooms out on the Tara estate while Gerald O’Hara praises the value of land made my TV seem like it stretched to IMAX proportions. I watched a game show for movie buffs many years ago where someone argued that Vivian Leigh gives the best performance of all time in this, and I can see where he is coming from. If Leigh needed to do anything as Scarlett O'Hara, she had to convince us that the war, her romances, etc. sent her on a trip to hell and back, and she nailed it. What's more interesting to discuss, though, is whether her experiences changed her. As her short-lived marriage to her cousin Melanie's brother, Charles, indicates, Scarlett was just as prone to deception and spite before the war. These tendencies help her succeed, but as we also see in other great movies with similar arcs this one may have inspired like Citizen Kane, The Godfather Part II, etc. a professional rise tends to lead to a personal fall. With that, it is as good a time as any to mention the movie's other dynamo casting move in Gable as Butler. Charming, roguish and essentially Scarlett's mirror, their cursed romance succeeds in challenging the notion that Scarlett changes, and with her foolish pursuit of Ashley, a divide forms between who she wants to be and who she really is. There is more to it than that, though, isn't there? After all, Scarlett O'Hara is not just a legendary character because she is viscous. All the while, we are reminded that in this world run by men, Scarlett believes she must be the way she is not to succeed, but to survive. As the extensive opening credits indicate, there are many players here beyond the doomed couple, some of whom through no fault of their own made me cringe - more on that later - but everyone ends up leaving a lasting impression. Standouts are Howard's annoyingly indecisive Ashley, De Havilland's saintly Melanie and of course McDaniel's voice of reason that is Mammy.
I have not watched many epics, but I have not seen one I have disliked yet, with this being one of the best American ones I've seen. While it is also one of the longest ones I have seen, since it held my interest and nothing in it seems unnecessary, that is not a drawback. That is not to say it does not have any drawbacks: much of the dialogue, especially during Scarlett and Rhett's arguments, seems too on the nose and explanatory as if the writer had little faith in the intended audience members' attention spans. Also, despite taking the movie's age and context into consideration, I still felt bad for McQueen, Brown and Polk for how they had to portray Prissy, Big Sam and Pork respectively. With that said, despite not sharing author Margaret Mitchell's lament that the Civil War happened, I would not make any core changes to the movie, and I am thankful that nobody has done so yet. After all, I doubt I would be drawn to history, literature or movies if they only offered perspectives I agree with. Again, I am glad that I finally checked this movie off my cinematic bucket list, that it exceeded my expectations and that I have another movie to put on my list of ones to see in a theater. I am also glad that I am less likely to be tarred and feathered in my home state now.
Having spent, well...quite a bit of time in Georgia, I somehow have never seen this movie until now. I'll just say that this is as scandalous around here as saying I've never been to the World of Coke or to a Bulldogs game. Now that I finally have, I'm glad I did because I really enjoyed it. I also appreciate finally learning why the movie is so popular and controversial.
First of all, if this movie did not invent the Hollywood epic, it might as well have. Half the joy of watching this is basking in its grandiosity, which made me understand why it is the biggest moneymaker of all time since it begs to be seen on the big screen. One moment in particular where the camera zooms out on the Tara estate while Gerald O’Hara praises the value of land made my TV seem like it stretched to IMAX proportions. I watched a game show for movie buffs many years ago where someone argued that Vivian Leigh gives the best performance of all time in this, and I can see where he is coming from. If Leigh needed to do anything as Scarlett O'Hara, she had to convince us that the war, her romances, etc. sent her on a trip to hell and back, and she nailed it. What's more interesting to discuss, though, is whether her experiences changed her. As her short-lived marriage to her cousin Melanie's brother, Charles, indicates, Scarlett was just as prone to deception and spite before the war. These tendencies help her succeed, but as we also see in other great movies with similar arcs this one may have inspired like Citizen Kane, The Godfather Part II, etc. a professional rise tends to lead to a personal fall. With that, it is as good a time as any to mention the movie's other dynamo casting move in Gable as Butler. Charming, roguish and essentially Scarlett's mirror, their cursed romance succeeds in challenging the notion that Scarlett changes, and with her foolish pursuit of Ashley, a divide forms between who she wants to be and who she really is. There is more to it than that, though, isn't there? After all, Scarlett O'Hara is not just a legendary character because she is viscous. All the while, we are reminded that in this world run by men, Scarlett believes she must be the way she is not to succeed, but to survive. As the extensive opening credits indicate, there are many players here beyond the doomed couple, some of whom through no fault of their own made me cringe - more on that later - but everyone ends up leaving a lasting impression. Standouts are Howard's annoyingly indecisive Ashley, De Havilland's saintly Melanie and of course McDaniel's voice of reason that is Mammy.
I have not watched many epics, but I have not seen one I have disliked yet, with this being one of the best American ones I've seen. While it is also one of the longest ones I have seen, since it held my interest and nothing in it seems unnecessary, that is not a drawback. That is not to say it does not have any drawbacks: much of the dialogue, especially during Scarlett and Rhett's arguments, seems too on the nose and explanatory as if the writer had little faith in the intended audience members' attention spans. Also, despite taking the movie's age and context into consideration, I still felt bad for McQueen, Brown and Polk for how they had to portray Prissy, Big Sam and Pork respectively. With that said, despite not sharing author Margaret Mitchell's lament that the Civil War happened, I would not make any core changes to the movie, and I am thankful that nobody has done so yet. After all, I doubt I would be drawn to history, literature or movies if they only offered perspectives I agree with. Again, I am glad that I finally checked this movie off my cinematic bucket list, that it exceeded my expectations and that I have another movie to put on my list of ones to see in a theater. I am also glad that I am less likely to be tarred and feathered in my home state now.