A sheltered and manipulative Southern belle and a roguish profiteer face off in a turbulent romance as the society around them crumbles with the end of slavery and is rebuilt during the Civi... Read allA sheltered and manipulative Southern belle and a roguish profiteer face off in a turbulent romance as the society around them crumbles with the end of slavery and is rebuilt during the Civil War and Reconstruction periods.A sheltered and manipulative Southern belle and a roguish profiteer face off in a turbulent romance as the society around them crumbles with the end of slavery and is rebuilt during the Civil War and Reconstruction periods.
- Won 8 Oscars
- 21 wins & 9 nominations total
- Ellen O'Hara - Gerald's Wife
- (as Barbara O'Neill)
Best Picture Winners by Year
Best Picture Winners by Year
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaHattie McDaniel became the first Black person to be nominated for - and win - an Academy Award.
- GoofsAfter Ashley Wilkes is carried into his room from a night at Belle's place, Melanie picks up a lamp with an electric cord attached.
- Quotes
Scarlett: Rhett, Rhett... Rhett, if you go, where shall I go? What shall I do?
Rhett Butler: Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn.
- Crazy creditsOpening credits prologue: There was a land of Cavaliers and Cotton Fields called the Old South... Here in this pretty world Gallantry took its last bow.. Here was the last ever to be seen of Knights and their Ladies Fair, of Master and Slave... Look for it only in books, for it is no more than a dream remembered. A Civilization gone with the wind...
- Alternate versionsWhen originally released theatrically in the UK in 1940, the BBFC made cuts to secure a 'A' rating.
- ConnectionsEdited into Raintree County (1957)
- SoundtracksSelznick International Theme
(1937) (uncredited)
Written by Alfred Newman
Played for the Selznick International Logo
I'm sure everyone knows the basic premise of the film. It boils down to a story about the life of woman, a daughter of a rich cotton plantation owner in 1860s, Georgia, who's life interweaves with the real life events of the American Civil War and the recovery and reconstruction years. It is a fictitious story utilizing events from the real world. Of course, most of us remember the picture on the movie posters of Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) and Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), locked in that emotional, romantic embrace, plus it's on the cover of every DVD and Blu-Ray out there these days, but the film is really about Scarlett and all the other characters come into her circle. And, the film needs to be about Scarlett in order to be successful, because it is her spoiled, selfish, smug demeanor that energizes the whole film. Everyone who comes into her circle feels her wrath, even Rhett. Rhett isn't really a very likeable character either and watching these two unlikeable characters square off, through various parts of this film, is something to see. These are the reasons, that make this film so good. A plot involving two unlikeable characters, who eventually, reach a certain amount of maturity, that they earn some respect from the audience, doesn't deter from the overall quality of the film, because it is such a unique character study, while chaos is happening all around them.
The film does contain many sub-plots, involving politically, socially, culturally and racially charged tones, which would be expected, considering the time this period piece takes place. Which, brings up another interesting point to this film. Even though this film is approaching 85 years old now in the 21st century, it is still considered a period piece. The interesting part is the filmmakers had a more recent memory of the events used in the film, being only 75 years before, as opposed to our view, which is roughly 150 years later. In fact, there probably were a couple of Civil War veterans still alive in 1939. Another amazing thing about this film is, they started shooting this thing in January, 1939 and released it just before Christmas that same year. That is impressive, considering the massive runtime of this film. It is the runtime of this film that really hurts it from being a perfect film.
The images the filmmakers (I would list names, but you should see the Crew List on this film), are able to show us on the screen, is incredible. The color you will have stuck in your head, for a week after viewing this film, will be the color of orange, red fire, that is seen throughout the movie and obviously, mostly comes from the burning of Atlanta. A technical achievement, that hadn't been seen in the movies yet. The special effects, art direction, costuming and lighting is fantastic. You still don't notice, even today, that most of this movie was just filmed, out in the Los Angeles countryside and on sound stages. So much is going on in this film, you don't notice it. The performances by the cast is perfect. This is an epic journey about redemption and maturing. A maturity that helps the characters and a nation begin to grow. This film would roll through the Oscars in 1940, including winning the Best Picture Oscar.
9.3 (A MyGrade) = 9 IMDB.
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Lo que el viento se llevó
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $3,977,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $200,882,193
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $1,192,593
- Jun 28, 1998
- Gross worldwide
- $402,382,193
- Runtime3 hours 58 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1(original ratio)