Gone With The Wind is, well, it's GONE!

It's a 78 year old, 4 hour long passe film with an ever shrinking audience

All Critics | Top Critics
TOMATOMETER

94%
Average Rating: 8.6/10
Reviews Counted: 82
Fresh: 77
Rotten: 5


Critics Consensus: Filmed and presented on a scale not seen in modern productions, Gone with the Wind is, if not the definitive Hollywood film, then certainly near the top of the list.

AUDIENCE SCORE

93%
liked it
Average Rating: 3.9/5
User Ratings: 292,794

Maybe people would learn something and also understand the climate the film was made in.

TALK TO YOUR KIDS ABOUT ...
Families can talk about how the Civil War is portrayed in Gone with the Wind via the character of Scarlett O'Hara. How does the war affect her way of life? Does living through war change her personality, or does she remain the same throughout?

Scarlett is married several times for different reasons. Was marriage her only option at the time? What is different about her marriages to Charles, Frank, and then Rhett? Which of her marriages means the most to her and why?

Melanie is Scarlett's opposite in most ways. How do their personalities, values, and behavior differ? Why does Melanie forgive Scarlett over and over again?

How are African-Americans depicted in the movie? Would the portrayal of Civil War-era slavery be different if this 1939 movie were remade today?

How do the characters in Gone with the Wind demonstrate perseverance? Why is this an important character strength?

From spectacle to intimate bedroom drama, Fleming kept a firm grip on the direction of the story. Task of holding audience attention for nearly three and three-quarter hours is a challenge to ingenuity and resourcefulness. That Fleming succeeds so well may be attributed to the manner in which he has highlighted his principals in every scene, regardless of the spectacular elements. Thus he has transferred into a moving and heart-rending stanza the panorama or wounded soldiers lying under the blazing sun in the Atlanta trainyards. There never is a static moment in the telling of the story. Fleming keeps characters and backgrounds on the move. Film started with George Cukor in the directorial spot. Fleming succeeded him and Sam Wood took over for a short period when Fleming was ill.

Every technical aspect of ‘Gone With the Wind’ bears the stamp of advanced craftsmanship. Despite the wide range of scenes depicted and characters shown there is unity of design and pattern. William Cameron Menzies supervised the general investiture and Lyle Wheeler was the art director. The authenticity of the furnishings, properties and apparel excites special interest. The job behind the screen was hefty in research and fabrication.

Same goes for all other off-screen contributions from other departments. Steiner restrained himself in his scoring from dipping into conventional melodic bathos. The ear catches strains from Stephen Foster, and occasional refrains from the large library of Civil War martial airs. Perhaps the highest praise which can be given to the Steiner work is that the score never pushes for favor above the dramatic action. Sound mixings were as smoothly achieved as the several visual montages.

Judging by the consensus on the removal of these kinds of things, I think that the publicity would be negative.

Quote:

I very much doubt it would get an Oscar today.

Is there an Oscar© category for over-rated crapola? GWTW would be a shoe-in.

Crash