Starring: Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, Leslie Howard, Olivia de Havilland
Release Date: Dec. 15, 1939
Running Time: 222 min
Genres: Drama, Romance, War
Commentary Gone With the Wind is a classic epic romance film adapted from the 1936 novel of the same name by Margaret Mitchell. The movie is wonderful for its acting, storyline, and cinematography. Also, like The Wizard of Oz, another movie released the same year with the same director, it's one of the first movies shot in color. Although I love this movie, I tend to think it's overrated.
Plot Summary Gone With the Wind takes place at Tara, a cotton plantation in Georgia, from 1861 to 1872. The first half of the movie takes place during the Civil War. Scarlett O'Hara (Vivian Leigh) lives on the plantation and is sought after by just about every elligible man in the county, but she has her heart set on Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard), who's engaged to his cousin Melanie Hamilton. She ends up winning the admiration of a brash young man named Rhett Butler (Clark Gable). He and Ashley both fight in the war and both survive. After the war, Scarlett marries Rhett but remains secretly in love with Ashley. After Melanie dies, Ashley becomes helpless, whence Scarlett realizes that he cannot love her. Shortly thereafter, Rhett leaves Scarlett, who is at first devastated but then decides that her home Tara is all that matters to her.
Cultural Significance Gone With the Wind was and still is a huge hit. Adjusted for inflation, it's the biggest grossing movie of all time. It also won nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and was nominated for five other awards. Black actress Hattie McDaniel won the award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first black actor or actress to win an Academy Award.
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Title: Gone With the Wind 
