|
The Grapes of Wrath
Description
| Product Description |
|
| Ranking No. 21 on the American Film Institute's list of the 100 greatest American films, this 1940 classic is a bit dated in its noble sentimentality, but it remains a luminous example of Hollywood classicism from the peerless director of mythic Americana, John Ford. Adapted by Nunnally Johnson from John Steinbeck's classic novel, the film tells a simple story about Oklahoma farmers leaving the depression-era dustbowl for the promised land of California, but it's the story's emotional resonance and theme of human perseverance that makes the movie so richly and timelessly rewarding. It's all about the humble Joad family's cross-country trek to escape the economic devastation of their ruined farmland, beginning when Tom Joad (Henry Fonda) returns from a four-year prison term to discover that his family home is empty. He's reunited with his family just as they're setting out for the westbound journey, and thus begins an odyssey of saddening losses and strengthening hopes. As Ma Joad, Oscar-winner Jane Darwell is the embodiment of one of America's greatest social tragedies and the "Okie" spirit of pressing forward against all odds (as she says, "because we're the people"). A documentary-styled production for which Ford and cinematographer Gregg Toland demanded painstaking authenticity, The Grapes of Wrath is much more than a classy, old-fashioned history lesson. With dialogue and scenes that rank among the most moving and memorable ever filmed, it's a classic among classics--simply put, one of the finest films ever made. --Jeff Shannon Editorial Descriptions are usually submitted by the manufacturers, publishers and authors. Contact us if you are one of them, and wish to change the above description. |
Reviews
Customer feedback
|
|
Voting |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Author: Guest
This review was written for John Steinbeck's book of the same name. The main points here also apply to the movie. Take advantage of both media to get a real feel for this classic of the 1930's.
Oddly, I first read John Steinbeck's classic tale of the 1930's depression, Grapes of Wrath, as a result of listening to Woody Guthrie's also classic Dustbowl Ballads. In that album Woody sings/narrates the trials and tribulations of the Joad family as they get the hell out of drought-stricken Oklahoma and headed for the land of milk and honey in California. After listening to that rendition I wanted to get the full story and Steinbeck did not fail me. His tightly-woven story stands as a very strong exposition of the plight of rural America as they tried to make sense of a vengeful God, unrelenting Nature and the down-side of the American dream. For those who have seem Walker Evans's and other photographers pictures of the Okies, Arkies, etc. of the period this is the story behind those forlorn, if stoic, faces.
The story line is actually very simple. The land in Oklahoma was played out, the banks nevertheless were pressing for payment or threatening foreclosure and for the Joads, as for others, time had run out. In classic American tradition they pulled up stakes and headed west to get a new start. With great hopes and no few illusions they set out as a family for the sunny and plentiful California of their dreams. Their struggle along the way is a modern day version of the struggles of the old Westward heading wagon trains-including the causalities. But, that is not the least of it. Apparently they had not read Frederick Jackson Turner's thesis that the frontier was gone- the land was taken. The bulk of the story centers of what happened when they get to the golden land-and it is not pretty. Day labor, work camps, strike action, murder, and mayhem-you know, California, the real California of the day. Not the Chamber of Commerce version. In short, as Woody sang, no hope if you aint got the do re mi.
Grapes of Wrath was made into a starkly beautiful film starring a young Henry Fonda as Tom Joad. On a day when you are not depressed it is a film you want to see, if only for the photography. So here is the list. Listen to Woody sing the tale. Watch Henry Fonda to act it out. And by all means read Steinbeck. He had an ear for the 1930's struggle of the Okies and their ilk as they hit California. What happened to those people later and their influence on California culture and those who didn't make it are chronicled by others like Howard Fast and Nelson Algren. But for this period your man is Steinbeck.
|
Author: Guest
Director John Ford has done a masterful job of bringing John Steinbeck's timeless novel to life in this movie. Starring Henry Fonda, Ford's film brings the struggle of the 1930s migrant working family to life.
Fonda stars as Tom Joad, a young man who's just been paroled from prision after serving four years for manslaughter. Upon arriving home, he meets Casey (John Carradine), a former preacher turned drifter. The two then head for the Joad homestead. Once there, Tom discovers that his family is gone. However, Muley Graves (John Qualen) has been hiding out in the Joad home. After he is discovered by Tom, Muley tells of the numerous land corporations and banks who have been taking possession of the local farms. Tom's father's farm has been repossessed, and the family has went to Uncle John's (Frank Darien) home.
Tom and Casey head to uncle John's house, where they find the rest of the family, including Pa (Russell Simpson), Ma (Jane Darwell), Rose-of-Sharon (Dorris Bowden), her husband Connie Rivers (Eddie Quillan), and Grandma and Grandpa Joad. The government agent comes to inform John that his land is being taken over, and the family packs their truck and begins the journey to California.
Along the way, the family is faced with many different trials and tribulations, including the deaths of grandma and grandpa Joad as well as Connie deciding to leave. They are forced to live in campgrounds designed specifically for refugee migrant workers, while Pa, Tom, and Uncle John try to find work.
Eventually, the men find jobs as fruit pickers, but they barely make enough money to buy food. There are run-ins with townspeople who don't want "Okies" stealing any more jobs. All through these troubled times, Ma does her best to keep the family together. Will the Joad family survive?
This movie, like the novel, has become a classic. The movie was nominated for numerous academy awards, and Jane Darwell won for best actress, while John Ford won for best director. The portrayal of life on the plains during the dustbowl years is done with great accuracy. Numerous families lost their farms and land during this terrible time and headed west to find new lives, and their struggle is portrayed excellently by the Joad family. The acting is excellent and the story is moving. There are many acts of kindness during the film, such as the scene where the diner waitress agrees to sell the Joads a loaf of bread and then sells the young Joad children candy for a penny. The scene where Ma Joad shares her meager food with the hungry children at the worker camp is moving, too.
I give this movie my highest recommendation. The acting and story are great, and the historical aspect of the time period is handled perfectly. Watch this classic movie and see what the lives of the migrant farmer families of the dustbowl years were like.
|
Author: Guest
Indeed as most reviewers note this film and story and cinematography is one of those unparalleled for overall brilliance in the portrayal of what is considered the plight of the common man in the throes of the dust bowl and depression popularized in modern music by Pete Seeger,Bruce Springsteen, Jack Kerouac in literature and the artistic expression of most anything labelled left-leaning from fashion to art.
This movie has a sublime power because it easily juxtaposes and makes one take sides between the family and the individual,love and hate, exploitation and fairness, Capitalism or benevolent Federalism all renderd in classic black and white nuanced beauty.
The film remains a tearjerker depicting Tom Joad and his family portrait of the the working poor and the disenfranchised farmer kicked off his land by carpetbaggers and bankers.Despite themes of exploitation and abuse it is possible to see the makings of an American epic and country in formation and development in which the movie pays it's homage.
A needed movie to be viewed by all on this DVD with wonderful transfers and stills, extras include newsflashes,commentary on the film, making this a worthy purchase of a history making movie that depicts a side of American history of a forgotten people living faithfully in the pursuit of security and family values amidst rapid change and industrialization changing the face of the USA and the world forever.
|
Author: Guest
For years "The Grapes of Wrath" was considered the best American film ever made. Now, according to the American Film Institute, it's #21. Based on the Pulitzer Prize winning novel by John Steinbeck, the movie is directed by John Ford and stars Henry Fonda giving one of the best performances in the history of cinema. "The Grapes of Wrath" is, in many ways, still the greatest American film in the sense that the film is about America, at a certain time and captures the feeling of The Great Depression better than most any other movie. Fonda plays Tom Joad, one of the most legendary characters of all time. After serving four years in prison for manslaughter, Tom is paroled and returns home to Oklahoma to see his family. On the way home, Tom encounters a former preacher named Casy (John Carradine) and the two travel to Tom's family's farm together. When they get there, they find out that Joad's family has been "tractored off the land." When Tom finds his family, they are packing up to head to California. Turns out there are some jobs for picking fruit, 800 people needed. So the Joad family sets off on the peril-laden trip to California, where they find that California might not be much better than what they left behind. Obviously, in my synopsis I've left many characters out including Ma Joad (Jane Darwell, who deservedly won an Oscar) but I figure if you're reading this then you've likely seen the movie anyway. One of the key elements of the films' success is the cinematography, by the legendary Gregg Toland (cinematographer on "Citizen Kane"). The film is in black & white, which has aged a lot better than color would have and features a lot of night scenes. In many scenes, characters are illuminated by a mere candle. "The Grapes of Wrath" has astonishingly not dated over the years; it's still as fresh and entertaining as I imagine it was upon its release. The film has legendary dialogue (the "I'll be there" speech) and a number of other things that make it so great. Saying a movie is a masterpiece is one thing, but getting people to see it is another. With people flocking to garbage like "The Grudge 2" and "Stomp the Yard" how many people actually see "The Grapes of Wrath" anymore? Not many, from my perspective. This is a terrific film that should be seen by any lover of film.
GRADE: A
|
Author: Guest
"Rich fellas come up an' they die, an' their kids ain't no good an' they die out. But we keep a'comin'. We're the people that live. They can't wipe us out; they can't lick us. We'll go on forever, Pa, 'cause we're the people."
The history of the Dustbowl Era is one that looms large in the minds of most of our family. The mere fact that some of us were born in Washington explains volumes about what it must've been like in Kansas and Oklahoma back in the day when you could have a wonderful crop one year, and the next year you could be turned out of your house and home.
John Ford's 1940 film version of John Steinbeck's "The Grapes of Wrath" is a flim like none other. Listed on many critics film lists as the best ever made, at least prior to "Citizen Kane" showing up in that position starting in the late 1950's, it tells the story of the Joad family, uprooted from their home in Oklahoma and sent hurtling into a new life in California.
As the family travels to California, they deal with many setbacks, including the deaths of two of their clan. When they finally reach California, they find that a glut of cheap labor has led to depressed wages, meaning that for a whole day's work they earn barely enough to scrape by.
Eventually after many trials and tribulations, the family reaches a camp run by the government (with a camp superintendent played by a man who actually did run such a camp in reality). There the family finds a safe place to live, decent wages, and a hopeful future... at least until the past catches up with one family member.
While Henry Fonda plays the protaganist in this movie, the real stand-out star is Jane Darwell, who played Ma Joad. From her first real scene, where she expresses concerns her son might've turned "mean" while in prison, to a touching farewell to her possessions when she tosses them into a stove before leaving, to the end, where she has one last dance with her son then gets the last words in the film (those at the start of the article), every moment she's on the screen is incredible. It's a movie worth seeing for performance alone. Women like her are, to a great extent, what this country is built on.
This was also a very political film. It was one of the first films to show poverty, true, soul-crushing poverty, in the United States. Most of are fortunate enough not to know what it's like to nearly starve to death (heck, put all the family together and we'd start to influence the tides), but in the not-so-distant past people were starving, dying, on the streets of our nation. Not because they were lazy, or foolish, but because they were being destroyed by a system that had left them to fend for themselves.
It also explored, somewhat obliquely, ideas of Communism that were floating around at the time. There was a large, simmering, vocal minority that believed only Communism could save the workers of the world from exploitation at the hands of big business. Looking at the way the world was then, one begins to sypathise.
All in all, this is a very personal film that's also quite epic. You see the sweeping panoramas for which Ford is rightly famous, but then you also get the small strokes, the tiny personal touches, such as when the children see flush toilets for the first time. It's a must-see for anyone interested in history, and anyone interested in film.
|
Send to Friend
Send to friend
|
|
