Epic Civil War drama focuses on the life of petulant southern belle Scarlett O'Hara. Starting with her idyllic lifestyle on a sprawling plantation, the film traces her survival through the tragic history of the South during the Civil War and Reconstruction, and her tangled love affairs with Ashley Wilkes and Rhett Butler. Classic Hollywood doesn't get any better than this; one great scene after another, equally effective in intimate drama and sweeping spectacle. The train depot scene, one of the more technically adroit shots in movie history, involved hundreds of extras and dummies, and much of the MGM lot was razed to simulate the burning of Atlanta. Based on Margaret Mitchell's novel, screenwriter Howard was assisted by producer Selznick and novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald. For its 50th anniversary, a 231-minute restored version was released that included the trailer for "The Making of a Legend: GWTW."
Easily the greatest movie ever made. NWRdr4 at 2010-01-31 15:45:11
Gone with the Wind has everything going for it, and nothing against it; it's simply perfect in every way. The illustrious story, which some have described as "overlong," can be more appropriately called "epic." The lead characters do not just give great performances--they create living, breathing characters. The brilliant usage of the film's admirably daring color-scheme perfectly compliments the mastery behind the camera; every shot is beautiful in its own right. And to top it all off, the movie's large-scale plot is never muddled--even in its most chaotic moments, the distinguished characterization and extensive set-pieces are strong enough to regroup the loose ends and effectively pull the film back together--that is, until the next splendid plot twist.