An impeccable masterpiece

Rating: 9/10 (12 June 2004)

WARNING: SPOILERS
This story is about one woman- she is beautiful, she is rebellious, she is daring, she is strong, she is Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh), a young lady from a wealthy family in Georgia in the 1860s. The civil war is imminent, and all men are ready to go to the battle fields. Scarlett is deeply in love with Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard) but he is about to marry his calm, graceful cousin Melanie Hamilton (Olivia de Havilland) and Scarlett refuses to accept the reality. At Twelve Oaks, where upper-class people gather for a party, where the gentlemen discuss the upcoming war, where Scarlett pleads with Ashley to marry her, Rhett Butler (Clark Gable), a free-spirited man falls in love with her at first sight. Out of despair, Scarlett accepts Charles Hamilton's (Melanie's brother, played by Rand Brooks) proposal, only to become a widow soon after the war has started.
The nation is torn, the great South is a smoking ruin and Scarlett's home, Tara, is burnt down. Once the proud and shining wealth and glory that used to be no longer exist. They are replaced with misery, starvation, poverty, sickness and deaths. Meanwhile, Scarlett and Rhett develop an unconventional but not physical relationship. But Scarlett chooses to marry Franklin Kennedy (Carroll Nye) in order to save Tara and make a good living. Only Melanie, the most compassionate woman in this story, empathises with Scarlett's intention. Unfortunately, their unhappy marriage doesn't last long. Franklin is later killed in an attempted ambush against the Yankees.
Finally, Rhett asks Scarlett to marry him and in the beginning, they live a content life. However, when Rhett discovers that Scarlett still hasn't forgotten about Ashley, his intense jealousy fuels and this marks the start of their troubles. Scarlett loses her unborn son, then her young daughter. After all this, she eventually loses her true love- which is Rhett, as she finally realises.
Of course this story is told from a woman's perspective, because this story is about a woman. This is a grand epic, the actors were marvellous and the technology was simply unbeatable. This film is about a courageous woman who goes through three marriages and still confused about who her true love is, and her lingering destroys Rhett's love for her. The whole tale is certainly tragic, but the ending suggests that there is hope, so long as Scarlett remains optimistic about the future. This film, in my opinion, is not just for women. I believe everybody can appreciate this outstanding piece of work. This is an all-time classic.