When I was young, my grandfather would speak of his favorite movie, Gone with the Wind.  I do not recall the first time I watched the movie with him, but it was probably when I was about eight or ten years old.  As a child who loved history, I found it interesting but a bit boring due to its length and melodrama.  Only later did I come to appreciate it for its role in film history, its stellar cast, and its aesthetic quality.

Gone with the Wind begins at Tara, a plantation near Atlanta, Georgia, owned by the O’Hara family.  The plantation is buzzing with news that a war may soon begin between north and south.  Young Scarlett O’Hara (Vivien Leigh) could care less about a war as she is pining for Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard), who she has just learned will marry his cousin Melanie Hamilton (Olivia de Havilland).  While making an advance on Ashley, Scarlett catches the eye of party guest Rhett Butler (Clark Gable).  In hopes of making Ashley jealous, Scarlett marries Melanie’s brother Charles before he rides off to war.  When news arrives that he has been killed, Scarlett is sent to Atlanta to live with Melanie’s family for a period of mourning.

Scarlett makes waves when she appears in her mourning attire at a charity event and dances with Rhett Butler.  When the Union army approaches, Rhett helps Scarlett and Melanie escape the burning city but when they arrive at Tara, they find it almost deserted.  Only her father, younger sisters and a few former slaves remain.  They struggle to get the plantation going again as the south is decimated by the war.  After the war, Ashley returns but is of little help in running the plantation.   He professes his love for Scarlett but says he cannot leave Melanie, who has become ill.  After another marriage and another husband’s death, Scarlett eventually marries Rhett.  However, Scarlett’s obsession with Ashley never ceases and Rhett’s jealousy and anger simmer.  In a short span of time, Scarlett falls down a flight of stairs and miscarries and their daughter Bonnie, who Rhett obsesses over, dies in an accident.  Their reason for staying together is now gone, the couple has a decision to make, and both make the opposite decision you would have predicted.  

Gone with the Wind was critically acclaimed and enormously popular on its initial release.  It brought in a staggering $18M at the box office, five times that of its nearest competitor.  Adjusted for inflation, it is still the highest grossing film of all time.  Over the next several decades, it was periodically re-released to the point it became ingrained in popular culture.  In recent years, it has become increasingly controversial to the point where Turner Classic Movies pulled it for a bit to redo their introductory segment.  A few other networks banned it entirely.  However, it would be a mistake to believe it has only recently become controversial.  Clark Gable threatened to boycott the movie’s premier in Atlanta because Hattie McDaniel was not allowed in the all-white theater.  It was only after McDaniel personally urged him to attend that he relented.  From the beginning, many objected to the film glorifying the myth of the southern Cavalier and the good old days of the antebellum south. 

Controversy aside, what has made Gone with the Wind the enduring classic that is beloved by so many people?  In part, it is the subject matter.  The Civil War was one of the defining experiences of American history.  It fascinates anyone with an interest in cultural or military history.  It created a nation from a collection of individual states.  It ushered in or accelerated advances in technology and led to the United States becoming an industrial powerhouse and world power.  It ended slavery but did not end racial inequality. 

Beyond the historical context, Gone with the Wind is an exceptional film with a legendary cast.  The cinematography brings the antebellum south, Civil War Atlanta, and the post-war Reconstruction era to life.  The two main characters are more complex than may be apparent at first glance.  Both are strong characters with a single weakness that is their undoing.  Scarlett O’Hara is a strong-willed woman who leads her family after the devastation of the war but her obsession with Ashley destroys any possibility of a happy ending.  Rhett Butler is a self-centered opportunist and cunning blockade runner but never seems smart enough to realize that he will never replace Ashley in Scarlett’s eyes.  Melanie Hamilton is tragically in Scarlett’s crosshairs for most of the film but returns this animosity with nothing but kindness.  Indeed, she is one of the kindest and most sympathetic characters in film history. 

Gone with the Wind features three Hollywood legends, all of whom were nominated for Oscars for their roles.  Vivien Leigh won an Oscar for her brilliant portrayal of Scarlett.   Clark Gable and Olivia de Havilland earned nominations for their performances of Rhett Butler and Melanie Hamilton.  The film also featured the first African American to be nominated for and to win an Academy Award.  Hattie McDaniel won the award for her role as Mammy, the servant who often seems like the one in charge or at least the only one with an ounce of common sense. 

In addition to Leigh’s Best Actress Oscar, Gone with the Wind earned nine other Oscars, a record that stood for twenty years until it was surpassed by Ben-Hur.  If you consider the big four awards to be Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress and Best Actor, only the last one eluded this film.  Even more impressive, this was accomplished in a year that many believe to be one of the greatest in film history.  Among the other memorable films released that year included Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Wizard of Oz, Stagecoach, and Goodbye, Mr. Chips. 

Gone with the Wind’s enduring legacy is reflected in AFI’s 100 Greatest American Movies of All Time where it earned fourth place.  Despite the increasing controversy over the film, Rotten Tomatoes still shows the film with a 90% Reviewer and a 92% Audience score.