Viewed in
2009
Premise
Based on John Steinbeck's novel about a poor Oklahoma family forced to move to California to find jobs, only to find different kind of hardship there.
Who should watch
Those who like old-school movies and want to see John Ford and Henry Fonda at their best.
Thoughts
I don't remember much about the book, but it seemed to be in the right spirit. The film portrayed the hard choices and desperation of the Great Depression, and suffering, poor workers taken advantage by large, powerful companies.
Once I got used to the dialogue and acting styles of that era, I was able to enjoy the film. It was easy to see why this translated well to a play. At times, there were lyrical scenes flowing with suffering and anguish, and memorable monologues. The black-and-white seemed to enhance the weary wrinkles on the characters.
While it's never fun to watch two hours of struggles and sorrow, 'The Grapes of Wrath' contained important messages, and showed the courage of the film makers and the characters in the story.
What I would change
Two things bugged me: the changed ending and the overuse of improper English in the dialogue. There were times when a character would mispronounce every other word in a sentence. It was easy for me to tell the characters were undereducated, and having them talk like that throughout the entire film was just overkill.
Even though my high school memory is hazy, I recall Rosasharon given birth to a dead baby, and breast-feeding a dying man. I was disappointed that those memorable, haunting scenes could not be filmed in the 1940's. Given Fonda's performance and the film's excellence, it would be a wonderful debate on whether this classic should be remade or not.
