The Grapes of Wrath (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
'The Grapes of Wrath' (directed by the great John Ford & adapted from John Steinbeck's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel) is set during the Great Depression, and is about Oklahoma farmers' migration from the dust bowl to pie-in-the-sky California. The story centers around the sprawling, share-cropping Joad family. Brilliant Henry Fonda stars as the short-tempered Tom Joad, who is freshly released after serving jail time for manslaughter; returning to his beloved Oklahoma home where he meets up with family friend Casy (John Carradine), a former preacher, who cautions Tom that intense dust storms, devastating crop failures, & new agricultural methods have financially ruined the fertile farmland.
Upon returning to the family farm, Tom is greeted by his distressed mother, Ma Joad (Jane Darwell), in their bedraggled shack, who informs him that the family has made the decision to head west for California to find 'hope' after their farm has foreclosed. Already well aware that Californians will be aggressive regarding them as direct competitors for jobs, & seeing for themselves a caravan of pitiful farmers heading back east after failing to find work ... the Joads still trek on in their beaten-up truck. Along the way, tragedy occurs ... several times. The family tries to overcome various hardships {which plays as a liberal parable against the very economic system that placed them in the position they are in in the 1st place}.
When Tom kills a thug, he goes on the run & must say goodbye to his bereft mother. Her only question: where will he go? To that, he delivers the movie's most potent & iconic speech: "I'll be all around. Wherever there's a fight so hungry people can eat ... whenever there's a cop beating a guy, I'll be there. And when the people are eating the stuff they raise & living in the houses they build -- I'll be there too".
'The Grapes of Wrath' tells an epic story of people trying their best with little hope. This is an excellent film, but notable, too, for exuding an extremely realistic depiction of its storytelling. The way the film looks & the way it is performed is not your typical Hollywood fluff; getting its points & themes across in a very poetic way. That said, though this is a hard-hitting film, it apparently softens a few plot points so as not to make the audiences more depressed than they likely already were.
This film rightfully won Academy Awards for John Ford's astute direction & Jane Darwell's affecting portrayal of Ma Joad. I'd have also given Henry Fonda Best Actor for his iconic performance. And I'm stunned that innovative cinematographer Gregg Toland wasn't noted for the amazing look & feel of the movie. Many film historians & cinema fans regard this film as one of the all-time greats. I get that; even if I preferred a few others in 1940.
Upon returning to the family farm, Tom is greeted by his distressed mother, Ma Joad (Jane Darwell), in their bedraggled shack, who informs him that the family has made the decision to head west for California to find 'hope' after their farm has foreclosed. Already well aware that Californians will be aggressive regarding them as direct competitors for jobs, & seeing for themselves a caravan of pitiful farmers heading back east after failing to find work ... the Joads still trek on in their beaten-up truck. Along the way, tragedy occurs ... several times. The family tries to overcome various hardships {which plays as a liberal parable against the very economic system that placed them in the position they are in in the 1st place}.
When Tom kills a thug, he goes on the run & must say goodbye to his bereft mother. Her only question: where will he go? To that, he delivers the movie's most potent & iconic speech: "I'll be all around. Wherever there's a fight so hungry people can eat ... whenever there's a cop beating a guy, I'll be there. And when the people are eating the stuff they raise & living in the houses they build -- I'll be there too".
'The Grapes of Wrath' tells an epic story of people trying their best with little hope. This is an excellent film, but notable, too, for exuding an extremely realistic depiction of its storytelling. The way the film looks & the way it is performed is not your typical Hollywood fluff; getting its points & themes across in a very poetic way. That said, though this is a hard-hitting film, it apparently softens a few plot points so as not to make the audiences more depressed than they likely already were.
This film rightfully won Academy Awards for John Ford's astute direction & Jane Darwell's affecting portrayal of Ma Joad. I'd have also given Henry Fonda Best Actor for his iconic performance. And I'm stunned that innovative cinematographer Gregg Toland wasn't noted for the amazing look & feel of the movie. Many film historians & cinema fans regard this film as one of the all-time greats. I get that; even if I preferred a few others in 1940.