The Grapes of Wrath is one of those films I know I saw in my youth but most of the details had long since been wiped from my mind. Other than the iconic moments you might see in retrospective documentaries on classic films. So this was basically like seeing it for the first time for me. Directed by John Ford and starring Henry Fonda it tells the story of the Joad family. Sharecroppers who, due to the one/two punch of the great depression and the Dust Bowl, are forced off their homestead. They load up their 1926 Hudson truck with all their earthly belongings and family and head to California with the promised availability of good work for good pay. Much of the film is the road trip but when they reach California, of course, all is not as was promised on a printed handbill they clutch in their desperate hands.
You already know The Grapes of Wrath is considered one of the great films of the early 1940’s and I will not be disputing that. Released in 1940, the U.S. was finally recovering from the depression, rain was just returning to the Midwest, and the nation was only a year from joining the war against Nazi Fascism in Europe and the Pacific. Audiences nerves were raw, the events depicted in the film were recent history and in the case of people traveling west looking for work, still current events. I, of course, was watching with eyes that never experienced any of those challenges. This is stuff that happened nearly a century ago. I’m not saying that I could not relate or, at least, feel compassion for the Joad clan. Knowing that similar stories played out, in real life, during the late 1930’s only added to the emotion the film stirs up. 85 years later The Grapes of Wrath is still a powerful portrayal of mans inhumanity to man along with the best there is in humanity.
In 1940 Henry Fonda was not the star he would become. In no small part to playing Tom Joad. He’d been acting in films for only 5 years by 1940 and had already been in a couple of movies that would become classics- Young Mr. Lincoln and Jezebel to name two. Fonda was nominated for Best Actor in a lead role for The Grapes of Wrath at the 1941 Academy Awards but lost to James Stewart for The Philadelphia Story. At the time Stewart said the award should have gone to Fonda. While I love that performance in The Philadelphia Story, I would agree with him. Fonda’s “aw shucks”, Midwestern young man is a joy to watch. While Young Mr. Lincoln is probably my favorite Henry Fonda performance, Tom Joad is a close second. Everyone in the cast is great. I think this film contains the best performance of John Carradine’s career, though I’d single out Jane Darwell as the real standout. Her Ma Joad is the foundation that the keeps the Joad family from crumbling under their hardships and, though Fonda’s “I’ll be there” speech toward the end of the film is inspiring, her lines that close out the film hit me the hardest...”Rich fellas come up an' they die, an' their kids ain't no good an' they die out. But we keep a'comin'. We're the people that live. They can't wipe us out; they can't lick us. We'll go on forever, Pa, 'cause we're the people.“ Darwell appeared in many great films after this one and her final screen appearance was in 1964 as “The Bird Lady” in Mary Poppins.
As I said, the events portrayed in this film were current events to those viewers in 1940. We can only imagine what it would have been like. John Steineck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath had only been published the year before (1939) and many of young actors of the time were eager to play Tom Joad. Of course Henry Folda was one of them. Prior to this film he had not contracted to a studio, as most actors were. He was a free agent, which allowed him to take films that appealed to him, no matter the studio, but producer Darryl F. Zanuck said he could have the role if he signed a seven pictured deal with 20th Century Fox. Henry Fonda wanted the role so much that he agreed to the deal. Director John Ford, who had already worked with Fonda a couple of times by this point, was well known for being a gruff, even mean at times, director and a staunch conservative. Which is odd seeing as The Grapes of Wrath is pretty openly pro-union. What appealed to Ford was the story of the Joad family. That was his way in. Yes, it’s pro-union but to him the focus was on the family and not as a social study. Which it also is. Ford would go on to win the Oscar for Best Director for his work on the film. Another interesting thing about this movie was the involvement of folk music pioneer Woody Guthrie. He consulted on the songs used and sung in the film. Also in 1940 he released his album- “Dust Bowl Ballads” which included the track “Tom Joad”, which he described as having composed for his national radio program so that folks who couldn’t afford to see the movie could “get the gist of the story”.
I can’t say I loved The Grapes of Wrath. It gets a little lost during the road trip and then events in California move a little to quickly. At least that’s my opinion. That’s not to say it’s not a great film. You cannot deny it. I challenge anyone to see it and not be moved by the Joad family’s adventure. You are also presented with some of the best film performances of it’s time by Henry Fonda, Jane Darwell, and John Carradine. The movie runs just under 170 minutes. Just about the time it begins to feel too long. This movie is known as a classic for a reason and is well worth your time if you’ve never seen it. Don’t expect it to be a “feel good” movie, though it does have it’s share of light moments (thank goodness), this is a touching and at times heartbreaking story of a moment in American History. One we should learn from and not forget.
I watched The Grapes of Wrath streamed on the public library app Hoopla, but it is available on home video for about $20.00.
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