Rent Gone with the Wind (1939)

A True Classic - Gone with the Wind review by AK

After so many years of putting off wathcing this film, i finally got around to watching this almost 4 hour epic film with the iconic Vivien Leigh. A truly well made film that has stood the test of time. Note: the DVD has two sides to it (Part 1 and Part2). The Part 2 side (with the continuation of the film) has a much lower audio volume overall which made it slightly hard to hear even after putting the volume to its highest. 

Classic film - Gone with the Wind review by giantrolo

Loved this film! What an absolute classic. Pretty much everyone knows the classic film line - "frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn!" - but there's nothing quite like watching this 3.5 hour epic all the way through. It's clear to see why the film is a multi-Oscar winner, with an important period of history intertwined with a fantastic cast of characters, from loveable rogues to loveable no-nonsense housekeepers. Highly recommended!

A spectacular historical epic that has stood the test of time - Gone with the Wind review by Philip in Paradiso

'Gone with the wind', made in 1939, has stood the test of time and is a spectacular period film, centred on the Old South of the United States, before, during and after the Civil War. The movie starts in 1861. On the eve of the American Civil War (1861-1865), Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) lives at Tara, her family's cotton plantation in the state of Georgia. On the estate, she lives with her parents and her 2 sisters. Numerous black slaves are working on the land, picking cotton. Those closest to the family work as domestic servants, including Mammy (Hattie McDaniel), who was Scarlett's nanny and still looks after her.

Scarlett is very young (aged 19): this is an important factor as she can be immature and capricious - to an extent, the film is also a coming-of-age story, as Scarlett discovers the harsh realities of the world and becomes a woman. Scarlett is the movie's central character: she is beautiful, sharp, intelligent, strong-willed, high-spirited and uncompromising. She can also be opinionated and manipulative, and there is a mercenary streak in her. The film is interesting in that Scarlett is a flawed and, in some ways, an unappealing person. Above all else, she is a survivor, who refuses to be subdued by life. Scarlett is deeply attracted to Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard). She learns that he is to marry his cousin, the wise and kind-hearted Melanie Hamilton (Olivia de Havilland). Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), a businessman with a mixed reputation, notices Scarlett at Ashley's engagement party and is soon pursuing her romantically. The film develops from this point onwards.

There are 2 parts to the story. The 1st part (1 hr 45 mins, side 1 of the DVD) is focused on the plantation life in the South of the USA before the Civil War and the war itself. The 1st part of the story is very much a period film with a strong historical background: I found it the most interesting. The 2nd part of the movie (2 hrs, side 2 of the DVD) narrates the post-war story of Scarlett and her love interests. It is primarily a romantic drama. The 2nd part is very good, but I found it less interesting, personally, than the 1st part.

There are many themes in the movie. The prime one is, quite obviously, the collapse of the Old South due to the disastrous outcome of the Civil War. To the (white) characters in the movie, who are very much the upper class benefiting from the plantation economy, the pre-war South is a genteel paradise: this is the world that Scarlett inhabits, with sumptuous parties, opulent mansions, and so on. The black slaves on whose blood, sweat and tears all of this luxury is built barely get a mention: we can say that they are seen through the eyes of their white masters. However, the African Americans have agency too, in their own way and at critical moments, so, it would be unfair to say they are non-existent in the movie. The civil war and its aftermath are seen as a calamity, as the lifestyle and prosperity of the South disappear in the wake of its military defeat against the Union forces of the North. Again, the story is seen through the eyes of the (white) plantation-owning class. How the Southerners adapt to the post-war situation is interesting and described in a balanced manner, however. Overall, the movie feels very realistic.

There are many other themes in the film, some quite subtle: for example, how misunderstandings and misguided expectations can derail otherwise promising sentimental relationships. Contrasts abound in the film, for instance between Scarlett and Ashley's wife, who personifies all that can be good in a well-bred woman. Rhett Butler is a fascinating character and Clark Gable gives a master performance as the suave and cynical businessman, who is nevertheless vulnerable. Overall, the story works and the movie is a great classic.