Film Review: Gone with the Wind

Director: Victor Fleming

Gone with the Wind became the longest film I have ever seen after I finished viewing it, its run time is officially listed as 220 mins without the overture and intermission. Despite it's incredibly long run time, this is an enthralling movie from start to finish that sets off at a fast pace and never relents. It's easy underestimate the incredible scale of production and cost for the time that the film was made, to make a film in 1939 that cost nearly $4 million is astounding. It was the first ever film to win the big four at the Academy Awards and Hattie McDaniel became the first African-American to win an Academy Award for her role as Mammy the house servant.

*spoilers ahead*

Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) and Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh)

A historical epic set in the deep-south against the backdrop of the American Civil War, the film centers around Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) who is seen as a spoilt 16 year old as her family prepare for a big BBQ on the cotton plantation they run called Tara. The lives of the family and locals are rocked by the news of the outbreak of war with the Yankees from the North which they are initially excited about but soon realise is bad news as they lose key battles over time. Scarlett also comes across Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) a rich man who is unpopular due to his belief that the South has no chance in the war, the love between them is unclear throughout most of the movie.

It's hard to sum up such a grand film as this into one paragraph, so much in terms of plot and character development is put into one movie. The development of Scarlett O'Hara is probably one of the greatest character arc's in film history, from young naive girl to a driven hard working lady who looks after the house following the war that has destroyed much of their fortune. There are many times when you are not sure whether she has changed for good or whether it is just temporary due to their current plight. Her back and forths with Rhett Butler are witty and well-written. This is far from a simple love story set against the depressing time of war, it is something so much more than that and this is why this film will always be remembered as a classic.

The acting especially from Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh is excellent, I think the dislike the two had for one another in real life helped fuel the chemistry between them through the film. Hattie McDaniel is hugely impressive as the house servant, there was criticism from the African-American population at the time for the depiction of slavery and sympathy for the plight of white people at the time at their expense but this was true to the time in the South. There was also criticism for the ''marital rape'' which Rhett apologizes for the next day, his actions are largely glossed over but again this is in keeping with the time that the film is set. It's impressive that a film of this time would deal with such delicate topics.

The only criticism I have is that the final part of the film dealing a lot more with Scarlett's squabbles with family and friends as well as the difficulties in her marriage to Rhett are slightly overplayed. If there is anywhere that this film could have been cut down in length it would have been here but the film sweeps you back off your feet with a dramatic ending and the line that is now so famous from the film.

"Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn"

3.5/4 Excellent historical epic

Film Preview: The Reluctant Fundamentalist

The aftermath of 9/11 was incredibly far reaching and in many ways is still being felt today, but for a Pakistani man living in New York chasing the American dream it can certainly change many things in your life. I've been assured this isn't a film just about 9/11 but more about people's attitudes towards each other with the film displaying both sides of a particularly difficult story.

Based on the 2007 novel of the same name by Mohsin Hamed, Changez (Riz Ahmed) is chasing the corporate dream working on Wall Street and being a top performer within his company. In the wake of 9/11, Changez becomes bitterly embroiled in a political war, a hostage crisis and whether he should give up his dream and go back to Pakistan.

The Reluctant Fundamentalist is released in the UK on 10th May 2013 and the trailer is embedded below:

This week's releases

Spring Breakers: A comedy looking at the sleaze, sex and violence that is Spring Break in America. Four college girls decide they will do anything to have the money for spring break so they take up armed robbery in this crime caper that naturally goes awry.

The Odd Life of Timothy Green: Fantasy drama ‘The Odd Life of Timothy Green’ tells the tale of a childless couple whose wishes literally come true in the shape of Timothy; a boy with a destiny to make their dreams of the perfect child come true. Starring Jennifer Garner and Joel Edgerton.

Film Review: My Own Private Idaho

Director: Gus Van Sant

A 1991 independent film that was written and directed by Gus Van Sant, he went to great lengths to persuade young up and coming actors River Phoenix and Keanu Reeves to join the project. Van Sant bypassed their agents to deliver the scripts direct to them in a hope of convincing them which seemed to work. He also had problems with financing for a risky project about a potentially controversial subject but after the success Drugstore Cowboy studios attitudes softened.

Mike (River Phoenix) and Scott (Keanu Reeves) are best friends who end up forming a relationship as they search for Mike's mother in a trip that takes them all the way across Idaho and further. The film also deals with Mike's past as a street hustler working with Bob Pigeon (William Richert) who looks after groups of street hustlers in an abandoned apartment building. Mike's sudden narcolepsy means he loses huge chunks of days and leaves him with some incredibly vivid dreams.

Mike (River Phoenix) and Scott (Keanu Reeves)

The film is like a modern version of Shakespeare's Henry IV and Henry V in its themes and references, unfortunately many of these feel rather forced than subtly conveyed. River Phoenix completely throws himself into the role of the troubled Mike with great results whilst Keanu Reeves seems to just passively drift through the film with no feeling or contribution.

The pacing is incredibly uneven with the film falling into huge lulls, which at times create nice individual set pieces, but overall dont really lead anywhere before working towards an incredibly rushed final 20mins. At times the film is visually stunning but that alone cannot make up for the shortcomings of this promising film.

1.5/4 Slow and bumbling before reaching an incredibly rushed climax

Film Review: The Wrestler

Director: Darren Aronofsky

A sports related drama released in 2008, it is known for the marquee performance of Mickey Rourke in the lead role. Many people feel he should won the Academy Award for Best Actor over Sean Penn who won it for his performance in Milk but he did win at the BAFTA's and Golden Globes. Darren Aronofsky went on to direct The Fighter and Black Swan that also performed well with critics, although I felt The Fighter was quite average.

Randy ''The Ram'' Robinson (Mickey Rourke)

Randy ''The Ram'' Robinson (Mickey Rourke) is a professional wrestler in the twilight of his career after being hugely popular in the 80's. He know wrestles on a weekend for a smaller local company and works at a supermarket part-time under his real name Robin. It shows the physical demands of wrestling as he is involved in a hardcore match which sees him sustain lots of injuries before suffering a heart attack. Robin is now forced to decide what is important in his life as he tries to reconcile with his daughter Stephanie (Evan Rachel Wood) with the help of stripper friend Cassidy (Marisa Tomei).

Stephanie (Evan Rachel Wood) and Robin (Mickey Rourke) 

Mickey Rourke is truly sensational as the troubled veteran wrestler, from the outset you feel like you are watching a real wrestler coming to the end of his career rather than an actor. He received a lot of praise from former professional wrestlers who felt his portrayal of Randy ''The Ram'' was incredibly accurate of the struggles they go through. The issue of a stardom is subtly addressed, how easy is it to give up something you love and where people idolize you for what you do? Many sports stars have compared it to a drug in that you always want one more time.

The film is beautifully shot, it displays middle-America as a bleak and dull concrete wilderness whilst the scenes where Randy is wrestling are a vivid display of light and colour. It almost mirrors Robin's life contrasting the glitzy glamour of professional wrestling to the miserable existence he leads in the rest of his life. What you are left with is an incredibly deep portrayal of someone clearly in pain mentally and physically wondering what he is going to do with the rest of his life, something that many people feel regardless of what has gone before.

3.5/4 Strong lead performance behind this touching drama

Film Review: Bowling for Columbine

Director: Michael Moore

A 2002 American documentary by Michael Moore, the film is renowned for making Moore a household name in America with his criticisms of American gun culture and violence. He sets the tone here with his comparisons to other Western nations and the better quality of life people supposedly have outside of America which he explores further in Sicko many years later. It won a special anniversary prize at the Cannes Festival where it was first released.

Moore explores American gun culture in the wake of the Columbine High School shootings that rocked America. He tries to understand why there are so many gun deaths in America compared to the rest of the Western world, especially Canada that has similar gun laws but a small fraction of the deaths related to guns. He interviews a cross section of different people from America and Canada on their opinions on guns including South Park creator Matt Stone, NRA President Charlton Heston and Marilyn Manson who was blamed by many for the violence in teenagers.

Columbine massacre survivors

In his usual style, Moore speaks to Americans and places their culture and lifestyle in front of a mirror. Just because this is the way its always been does this mean the future should be like that as well? In terms of gun control he certainly thinks it should not. He asks gun enthusiasts why they feel the need to have guns and that surely everyone owning a gun is adding to the deaths in America, especially the number of accidental death in children from guns lying round the house. Moore makes great arguments and is pushing an issue that everyone outside of America is fully behind but presses his arguments far too hard and in a non too subtle way. I think documentary enthusiasts are used to more refinement and are intelligent enough to see the problems presented without having them repeatedly forced down their throat.

The interview with Marilyn Manson was superb to watch, he comes across as an incredibly intelligent and articulate person with his quote about what he would have done if he got the chance to speak to the kids of Columbine was absolutely spot on. His quote was "I wouldn't say a single word to them I would listen to what they have to say, and that's what no one did". In many ways this sums up politics across the board.

2/4 Superbly on-topic but becomes very preachy and doesn't need to push the message as hard as he does

Film Review: A Film Unfinished

Director: Yael Hersonski

A documentary film made in 2010 which looks at the unfinished propaganda film called Das Ghetto made by the Nazis inside the Jewish Ghetto in Warsaw. The piece was intended to show the Jewish people in a bad light by showing them as dirty and unclean whilst enjoying a lavish lifestyle of rich food by forcing people to act in different scenes. The Nazis used scare tactics and violence to force these carefully constructed scenes but in the end the film was never actually used.

The propaganda film was shot over 30 days in 1942 just before the transportation of Jews to Treblinka began, the uncut film showed multiple scenes being re-shot with well dressed Jews to ensure the Nazis got the right shot. The well dressed Jews were ordered to ignore begging children in the street and the dead bodies lying in the gutter to make them seem heartless towards one another which couldn't have been further from the truth. It demonstrates the suffering and humiliation that the Jews suffered in the ghetto from a slightly different angle from many other documentaries and films on the subject.

Footage from inside the Warsaw Ghetto

Also shown are interviews with Jewish survivors who speak about the filming in the ghetto and their experiences, these conversations along with black and white videos add to the haunting effect of the entire piece. But the most intriguing interview without a doubt is with Willy Wist who worked as cameraman on Das Ghetto who is asked to recall scenes that he shot. His interview is incredibly uncomfortable as he is evasive about what he actually knew at the time and whether he was purposefully ignorant towards the Jews plight.

The main thought behind the entire film is whether we can trust our own eyes and memories in cases like this?  Do we need cameras and physical footage for a more accurate view on what happened? The film makers do a good job of letting the interviews and footage speak for themselves without trying to express their opinion too greatly. Unfortunately in some cases the footage, whilst upsetting, is hard to distinguish why certain pieces of footage were shown. Possibly for somebody without much knowledge of the Holocaust this would be very useful but for someone with a more in-depth idea of what happened it seems unnecessary.

3/4 Intriguing piece that isn't quite different enough from previous works.