Beautifully dressed in a red velvet elongated case in a limited edition release (150,000), the 70th anniversary of Gone with the Wind comes to Blu-ray and sashays into our hearts once more.
A true fan, I have read Margaret Mitchell’s beloved book several times and seen the movie several times, and it was a delight to me to revisit it on Blu-ray.
Even more delightful were the extras that come with the film. Truly meant for the collector, the set includes a CD Soundtrack Sampler, two booklets on production (one a playbook, actually a reproduction of the original 1939 souvenir program, and the other a 40-page production history book), memos from studio heads about production (in one Erol Flynn is third in consideration for the role), and a packet of art stills that depict what the sets and scenes would look like. There are many special features on disc three and four, and a bonus disc that goes into depth with historical sites and interviews.
It is my opinion that the technology of Blu-ray is the BFF of costume designers. I could go on and on about how the costuming ‘pops’ on the format - things I never noticed before, such as in the opening scene when Scarlett is talking to the twins, she is wearing red shoes. You can see the eyelet pattern in the lace of her dress, the red velvet bows in her hair.
That is just one example of how Blu-ray enhancing the costuming, and there are oh-so many! I could go on and on, describing each dress of Scarlett’s from the famous green curtain dress to the white and green summer dress she wore with the straw hat with the trailing green ribbons - all in remastered glorious Technicolor.
Blu-ray not only enhances costuming but sets and the landscape become more detailed.
The South may have lost the war but in literary terms, the Civil War has become words well spent. And it makes for good film merits, too. The burning of Atlanta on Blu-ray made me mad! Granted, I have seen Gone with the Wind a dozen times, but not this up close and personal! As Rhett says, “Waste makes me angry.”
And much of the carnage of war, especially the Civil War that was fought in our own backyards, was a waste. And we see the waste: soldiers laying in agony in make-shift hospitals, homes looted and burned.
The scene where Scarlett (with Prissy and Melanie and baby in the wagon) rides through the dead bodies of soldiers brings home that incredible waste with striking clarity. The camera pans upward and out and the ground is littered with the fallen. Tara, Sacrlett’s home, is spared, but the Yankees have been there too, and the house is a mere shell.
We see her struggles, even the dirt under her fingernails, as she comes home to find her home looted, her mother dead of fever, and her father gone mad.
From her homecoming to Tara we see the dirtiness of having to survive - enhanced only the way Blu-ray can - and the now famous scene in the sunset where she vows never to be hungry again.
She manages to keep that vow by becoming ‘Mrs. Kennedy’ and paying the $300 owed toward her precious home, Tara. It is her second marriage, but the presence of Rhett Butler continues to dog her as he brings her his sarcastic wit and questions her motives as to why she became ‘Mrs. Kennedy’.
Eventually she becomes ‘Mrs. Butler’ as she marries Rhett, admitting the money is nice, though she isn’t in love with him. He takes her to New Orleans for their honeymoon and lavishes her with wealth.
The house that Rhett buys Scarlett looks more ostentatious on Blu-ray than I remember. And the tragedy of their daughter, Bonnie Blue, is engrained in memory because of the deep blue dress she wore and the green of the lawn.
Some of the matte painting are a bit stilted and recognizable as such - but any movie enthusiast with recognize the artistry and style of the times and appreciate the attention to detail that Blu-ray brings.
It is my opinion that this is one of the most perfectly casted movies ever. Clark Gable plays Rhett, and in the Souvenir Program, gives his view of ‘Rhett’, and it is an interesting piece indeed! Vivien Leigh does the same thing, and gives her opinion of Scarlett. Fine reading, and very insightful, it is always a thrill to me to see the ‘other side’ so to speak - to hear the stars speak (or write, in this case), of their experiences.
Other players, of course, include: Leslie Howard as the quiet and gentle Southern plantation owner Ashley Wilkes that Scarlett is so in love with, Olivia de Havilland as the saintly Melanie who gives her undying loyalty to Scarlett (though Scarlett has a ‘thing’ for her husband Ashley), Hattie McDaniel as the motherly but very out-spoken Mammy, and Butterfly McQueen as Prissy, the squeaky-voiced house slave who didn’t know much about birthing babies.
The relationship between Scarlett and Rhett is the core of the story. He knows of her ‘love’ for Ashley Wilkes and tries, in vain, to reason with her, saying that he is more suited to her - both of them are selfish and spoiled and apt at speaking their minds. She uses him to escape Sherman’s raid on Atlanta, but he leaves her as they approach Tara, telling her in only Rhett-fashion that he loves her.
She plays on his love for her and tries to manipulate him when he is in jail, but of course Rhett turns her manipulations back on her and he doesn’t lend her the $300 to save Tara. Through out the film, they weave in and out of each other’s lives and until Rhett demands she marry him.
The marriage is not a happy one, as Rhett cannot change who Scarlett is anymore than she could change him. Bonnie Blue is born and Rhett transfers his love for Scarlett to taking care of his daughter - he spoils her ridiculously, buying her a pony, which ultimately leads to Bonnie’s death.
Someone once said to me that it is true love because it’s a true tragedy. In other words, things didn’t work out. And most know how Gone with the Wind ends, so it shouldn’t be a spoiler to say it doesn’t end happily. But the strength of Scarlett’s character shines through in the final moments of the film as she says the famous line, “Tomorrow is another day.”
This 70th anniversary edition really pays homage to this great film. It is so nice, in fact, that it makes me wonder what Warner Brothers will do for the 75th anniversary. A great addition to any fan of the book or the film or any movie enthusiast, this is a must have. But just a hint: buy a shelf to go with it because it won’t fit comfortably with other sets. Amazon . Visit the DVD database for more information.
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