Grapes of Wrath is a 1940 film, directed by John Ford. The film stars Henry Fonda and Jane Darwell as Tom and Ma Joad respectively. The plot of the film is set in the Great Depression era and tells a story of a family that is forcefully evicted from their house due to bankruptcy. This misfortune pushes the family to move to California; the land where opportunity of finding a job is promised. But, when the family reaches their destiny, they get struck with an even bigger turmoil and the so called promises end up being a hoax. The film features a spew of themes and motifs such as importance of Family, religion vs. natural morality, love of the land, i.e. “roots”, human dignity and spirit in face of adversity, and social and economic injustice. The film also won two academy awards; Best Director, John Ford and Best Supporting Actress, Jane Darwell.
ArticleTHE GRAPES OF WRATH REVIEW
By: T.J. Mulligan
The family unit, struggling against the odds to create a new life after their old one has been forcibly ripped away. It’s the stuff of great dramatic storytelling, sure, but it was an all too real fact in Depression-era America. Individuals and families disseminated from their homes, forced to traverse the country in search of work, food or a place to call their own. They became little more than animals, scrounging, scraping for something, anything tangible to call their own. It makes for intriguing drama on paper and on film because it is honest human drama, lived by breathing, functioning individuals, making it all the more heartbreaking. In John Ford’s film version of John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath, audiences who possibly avoided any real life-changing impacts of the Great Depression were given a view of what these dissipated people went through.
The Grapes of Wrath is the story of Tom Joad (Henry Fonda) a man heading to his family home in Oklahoma after a stint in prison on manslaughter charges. On his way he meets Jim Casy (John Carradine), a former preacher who’s lost his way spiritually. Together they venture to Tom’s parent’s place only to find it deserted save for a man by the name of Mulay (John Qualen). Mulay relates to them how all of the land in the area had been forclosed on, including Tom’s parent’s and his own. From there Tom and Casy go to Tom’s Uncle John’s place where they find Tom’s parents as well as assorted other family. They explain to Tom their plan to head to California because of a flyer they received letting them know about available work. Tom, Casy and the rest set to packing up the half broken-down automobile they have and in the morning, begin their venture west along U.S. Highway 66. With little money and nothing to go back to they press on toward California and the hope of work… a hope which seems to fade with every pitfall the family encounters.
The look of The Grapes of Wrath not only places the viewer immediately in the center of everything aesthetically but also emotionally - it is dark, dusty, desolate and depressing in the look of the broken home land of Oklahoma. As the family ventures west, the landscape remains bleak - nothing but concrete and more dust as they drive - and it continues to bring the feeling the film is trying to convey right up front. This is not a happy movie by any means. The plight of the Joads and people like them is what helps give the Great Depression even more meaning to its name. Even now, far removed from that time period, watching the struggles of this family is difficult for anyone with a conscious. What’s more, at every turn the family just seems to be more and more shit on: a family member dies, something breaks down, almost everyone they meet out west is an asshole, etc. The only solace one can extract is that they, as a family unit, will stick together no matter what.
As stated above, the look of the film is hauntingly beautiful, lending an emotional push simply through the environment. The acting is superb as well, with Fonda, Carradine and Jane Darwell as the steadfast family figurehead Ma Joad stealing most of the show with their performances. Having never read the novel I can’t comment on how well the film plays to it, but I assume it’s at least as melancholy in nature if not much, much more. It’s a film that could easily be considered “boring” if viewed by a modern audience, but it is an example of excellent cinematic storytelling, shedding brighter emotional light on a time period in American history better than most history books ever could.
SummaryThe article starts out with the writer complimenting the film for doing a great job of portraying the Great Depression and the characters for their great portrayal of the struggling, down to earth family. He calls the film an “honest human drama, lived by breathing, functioning individuals, making it all the more heartbreaking.”The article then goes on to summarize the film.
The writer then explains how the film, from beginning, was not meant to be a happy film. He explains how important the entire “journey” aspect of the film was as it helped set the depressing tone for the film. He also emphasizes that the other “Joad” like characters also help authenticate the Great Depression setting. Most importantly, he mentions the importance of family, an important theme of this film.
The writer then compliments John Carradine and Jane Darwell for their superb work. He then states that the modern day fans might find the film boring, but he states that the film is an example of excellent cinematic storytelling; shedding brighter emotional light on a time period in American history better than most history books ever could.
Relation of the Article to the ScreeningOne thing that I can use from the article that relates to the screening is the importance of the Joad’s journey and the family. During this journey, the Joads were stricken with numerous obstacles. They saw things that will break a normal person. But, this family stuck together. They faced everything together and triumphed. They tried to remain positive even in the darkest of times, and that’s something that’s very respectable. This is the key element of the film. John Ford, as seen in our notes, is a very family oriented person. Therefore he understands that family is one of the most important things in one’s life; while most will take theirs’ for granted. I believe he wants his viewers to feel this.
Critique of the FilmThe film is definitely a must watch. In contradiction to the article, I think someone watching this film has to be pretty ignorant if they found it boring. John Ford is simply a genius at what he does and his work is set in stone forever. The story, the cinematography, the acting, and of course the direction of the film are simply superb. After watching Stagecoach, I did not think John Ford would be able to outdo himself, but, I must say that Grapes of Wrath comes slightly above Stagecoach, because of its heart throbbing storyline and down to earth characters, such of course is obviously an opinion and could be disputed. My favorite thing about this film was the Ma Joad Character. She played an incredible mother and did a great job of being the glue for her family. Her emotions, happy or sad, made me feel the way she was feeling.
