Gone with the wind

1. Relate what was discussed in class or the text to the screening.


The 1939 blockbuster film "Gone With The Wind" is a film in which deserves all the praise. It is one of the most beloved, enduring, and popular films of all time. Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh co-star to deliver a cinematic masterpiece of a love and hate relationship that transpire to a great plot line taken place in the Civil War era. The film takes us back to civil war times as we explore the rough times Americans and African Americans went through in the time of despair. The film is recognized in the African American cinema as African American actress Hattie McDaniel is well known for her role as Mammy, in which she was the first African American to win an Academy Award in the selection for best supporting actress.




2. Find a related article and summarize the content.


http://www.gulf-times.com/entertainment/240/details/412239/gone-with-the-wind-turns-75


An article was published in the Gulf times, a daily Arabic newspaper published in Qatar, Doha, titled "Gone with the Wind turns 75" talking about the 75th anniversary of the feature film "Gone with the Wind" directed by Victor Fleming, George Cukor, and Sam Wood. The article talks about the portrayal of the Civil War in the film and how the film shows is not exactly accurate at the events it shows. The article mentions how slavery is a key component of the film and that even though African American actress Hattie McDaniel won the Academy Award for best actress the film still shows little respect for African Americans during that time period and how since its opening the film has been criticized about that. "So Gone with the Wind despite being a cinematic masterpiece, is a politically a disaster." This quote from the article reveals that although the film showed parts about slaves it didn't show the bigger picture in which some southern slave owners treated their slaves as family members, but others were quite brutal and didn't show respect. Basically meaning the movie didn't cover all aspects of the Civil War and the initial purpose that the war was fought


3. Apply the article to the film screened in class.


The article did support the cinematic genius behind the production of "Gone with the Wind." The article also mad me change the way of thinking now that I have read the article and viewed the film. The film did show mostly all positives about slaves and slave masters having a good relationship with each other. I'm sure that slave masters like that did exist in that time period but they were not a lot of them. I believe the film could have been more realistic if it showed some of the more negative themes of slavery as well as the positive to serve as a purpose of giving history to a time period in which America was split into two different parties.




4. Write a critical analysis of the film, including your personal opinion, formed as a result of the screening, class discussions, text material and the article.


Before watching the film and learning that this was one of the top films recognized in African American Cinema I was expecting to see more African American actors in the film. The film did glorify slaves during the Civil War and showed the brighter sides of the Southern plantations. The film was very believable and enjoyable as I could watch a piece of history in time where not much history had been recorded and America was still fighting for overall equality and peace amongst the nation. I admired Clark Gable as well as Vivien Leigh's work in the film and also gained more knowledge about early film making and production.