Gone with the Wind

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Deciding whether or not to watch Gone with the Wind is a personal choice, and it's helpful to consider several aspects of the film before you commit to its nearly four-hour runtime.

The Case For Watching It

A Cinematic Landmark: Gone with the Wind (1939) is one of the most famous and commercially successful films in history. When adjusted for inflation, it remains the highest-grossing film of all time. It was a monumental achievement for its era, winning eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

Epic Scope and Production: The film is visually stunning, especially considering its age. The use of Technicolor, the elaborate set designs, and the massive scale of scenes like the burning of Atlanta are still impressive. It truly lives up to the term "epic."

Iconic Performances: The lead performances are legendary. Vivien Leigh's portrayal of the headstrong and complex Scarlett O'Hara is widely considered one of the greatest in film history, earning her an Oscar. Clark Gable's Rhett Butler is equally iconic. Hattie McDaniel also won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Mammy, becoming the first African American to win an Academy Award.
A "Must-See" for Film Lovers: For anyone interested in the history of cinema, understanding the Hollywood studio system, or studying film as an art form, Gone with the Wind is essential viewing. It's a key part of American cultural history.

The Case Against Watching It (or What to Be Aware Of)

Problematic Depictions of Race and Slavery: This is the most significant and widely discussed issue with the film. Gone with the Wind presents a romanticized, "Lost Cause" view of the antebellum South. It largely glosses over the brutal realities of slavery, depicting enslaved people as content, loyal, and happy in their roles. This perspective is considered by many to be deeply offensive and a form of historical revisionism.

Pacing and Length: At nearly four hours long, the film's pacing can feel slow by modern standards. While the first half, which covers the Civil War, is often praised for its grand scale and compelling narrative, some viewers find the second half, set during Reconstruction, to be less engaging and drawn out.

Dated Sensibilities: The film's themes and dialogue, while considered groundbreaking for their time, may feel a bit tame or melodramatic for contemporary audiences. The central romantic drama is a product of a different era.
Conclusion

If you are a fan of classic cinema, epic romances, or want to understand a key piece of film and American history, Gone with the Wind is absolutely worth watching. It's a technical and artistic achievement with performances that stand the test of time.

However, it's crucial to watch it with an understanding of its historical context and to be aware of its deeply problematic and inaccurate portrayal of slavery and the Civil War. Many critics and scholars recommend watching it as a historical document that reveals the racist ideologies prevalent in Hollywood at the time it was made, rather than as a definitive or accurate account of the era it depicts.



Thats what Gemini said. I say watch it just to see the slaves. Remember the good times.
 
The movie drags forever, find a "Gone With The Wind in 60 seconds" -type video to watch. The writers boiled down a great novel into boy-meets-girl and it's infuriating.

Read the book. Gone With The Wind was written by someone who grew up around folks that had lived through the Civil War and spoke of the old days often. It is a novelization of those memories and offers a glimpse of what life was like leading up to, during, and after the War.

It can be found at Project Gutenberg

and Internet Archive
 
It features the first acting performance by a black person to win an Academy Award. However, it also launders harmful and racist "lost cause" imagery that downplays or ignores the brutal reality of chattel slavery in America. So I think the socially responsible thing to do is to both watch it and not watch it.
 
It depends entirely on whether you'd love to see one of those giant tomes in your grandmom's bookshelf with a bunch of people in huge dresses on the cover made into a movie.
 
The movie makes more sense if you view Scarlett as a villain protagonist. A main theme of the movie is how people deal with apocalypse/war. Some people crumble into nothing (like Scarlett's Dad,) some people remain nice, (like Melanie and Ashley,) and some people throw away all of their scruples and do whatever it takes to get money (Scarlett.) Rhett is portrayed as the ultimate Gigachad with a raging case of Oneitis for Scarlett, which gets frustrating because she has Oneitis for another woman's husband and is (apart from her determination and spirit) pretty much an awful human being in every way.
 
The film is worth watching if you consider yourself a movie fan. It's a great film, Scarlet and Rhett are two of cinema's most iconic characters and it's pretty much the epic film by which all epic films are judged by.
 
controversial666 said:
Wait so this phrase comes from this movie? Didn't know that despite hearing it so many goddamn times
Click to expand...
In the book, Rhett's final words to Scarlett when he walks out on her are a curt, cunty "I don't give a damn".

The line was iconic as fuck but forbidden by the Hayes Code banning swears (and this was back when damn was considered to be equal to screaming fuck and cunt). To get around it, the studio "softened" the line via adding "Frankly my dear" to it (to make it seem less cunty and more casual spur of the moment cursing of Scarlett) and straight up told the Hayes Code they'll pay any fine they want to fine them, because fans would be pissed if the line was completely cut. Which is what ultimately happened.
 
If you haven't seen the classics, which are classic for a good fucking reason, then your missing some foundational material.

If you grew up on Marvel slop then no, the classics will bore you to tears in the first 20 minutes. I feel nothing but pity for all those growing up thinking End Game was a great movie. It was goy-slop that was sold to people thanks to the internet feedback loop machine.

Movies you need to see if you actually like movies.

In no real order;
  • Casablanca
  • Maltese Falcon
  • Wizard of Oz (the original not the modern trash)
  • Gone with the Wind
  • Birth of a Nation (yes it's hated today but it is still the foundation of every movie made since Griffith invented pretty much everything)
  • It's a Wonderful Life
  • Double Indemnity
  • Duck Soup (I dare you not to laugh)
  • Dracula (1931)
  • Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
  • The Seventh Seal
  • Paths of Glory
  • A Christmas Carol (1951)
  • Rebel Without a Cause
  • The Bridge on the River Kwai
I could go on and on but these are the ones that pop into my head when I think of a "great movie".
 
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