Grapes of Wrath Review

Rating: Null/10 (11 October 2011)

The Grapes of Wrath gives us a look into what life was like for the displaced farm families and the migrant workers during the Great Depression. It does this by following the struggles of the Joad family, Midwesterners who lost their farm, as they try to make it to California and a better life. Overall, I found this film to be enjoyable in that it held my interest and made me feel like I was learning about an important piece of American history that's often forgotten. One positive aspect of the movie was the acting of Henry Fonda as Tom Joad, a young farmer, and John Carradine as Tom Casy a former preacher. I was also struck by the perseverance and hopefulness of the Joad family. Even though one misfortune after another happens to them, they never give up hope. There seems to be a message here about how people can come out okay no matter how bad their situation is if they keep trying. On a less positive note, some of the travel scenes were a bit boring and could have been shortened.