Grapes of Wrath Film Review
The Grapes of Wrath was a 1940 film directed by John Ford. The film, based off of the novel of the same name written by John Steinbeck, starts of with Tom Joad, a young man who just got out of prison and is returning to his family in Oklahoma. As he comes to his family's property, he meets an ex-preacher named Casey, who he teams up with and go to the family farm house to find it deserted. There, they find a man named Muley, who tells them in story that his family was forced off their land by the deed owners. After meeting back up with his family, Tom and the Joads, as well with Casey, pack up their belongings in a old sedan as their house is torn down by a tractor, decide to head west to California on as migrant workers in search for work in the "promised land". Along the way, the trip takes a tole on the family as Grandpa passes away, they bury him properly and leave a note on the grave to tell what happened. The family parks at a camp where they meet a man who laughs at their optimism for work in California, damping the family's spirits. After moving to camp to camp seeing the same results of no work and poverty, the family becomes less and less spirited of the promises of California. Running into a problem with a agitator, Tom finds a group of workers on strike, and agrees to go to their secret meeting. Once the meeting is discovered, Casey is killed in a scuffle, as Tom kills a man in the process, and gets away. Returning back to his family, they decide to leave the camp, hiding Tom from the camp cops. After successfully getting away, the family comes to a Government-run camp, called camp Wheat Patch. There they find work and clean conditions, having running water and indoor facilities for the first time. Tom decides that, after all what he has seen traveling from camp to camp, it is time to work for a social change, also to help protect the family from his crimes. Tom says goodbye to Ma, and goes on to work towards social change for the Okies. The family decides to move on again, en-route, talking about the trials and tribulations they had and what lies ahead of them. Ma Joad ends the film by saying that no matter what happens, they are still a hard working family and will keep moving on. The screen fades to black.
The film itself hits on several major issues during the time of little work, the dust bowl, and the great depression. The Joads are a honest people, making their living through labor and hard work. The US at the time was going through one of the hardest economic times it has ever seen. The lack of jobs to be found struck the nation and a new mindset hit the American people. Those in positions of power tried what they could to keep it, taking advantage of a lack of jobs to lure people in to work for horrible low wages to make a larger profit. Police worked with the landowners, and the trickle down economy was damned and clogged by the upper class. Families such as the Joads were forced to move where the jobs were, and it was rough business. Families fell apart, starved and ended in despair . In such a rough time for the US, the American Dream was probably at its most strongest point. The search for wealth and stability in an open market strengthened, as families relied on each other to complete the machine of a working family. Survival relied on hard work, the "9-5" group, the manual labor jobs and ditch diggers. Despite the world weighing heavy on the Joads, they never quit.
The film touches on issues that we can still relate to today. The middle class has been the center of talk in politics, but still feels the pressure of the American economy. Poverty is a real problem that many turn a blind eye to, with the lack of jobs and education available to those without much experience, the hole of poverty is almost impossible to climb out of. In this new age, hard work and manual labor cannot suffice for a honest living. Advancing technology has changed the way we hire individuals, putting more and more pressure on the middle class to rise above the bar, or fall below.
The film itself hits on several major issues during the time of little work, the dust bowl, and the great depression. The Joads are a honest people, making their living through labor and hard work. The US at the time was going through one of the hardest economic times it has ever seen. The lack of jobs to be found struck the nation and a new mindset hit the American people. Those in positions of power tried what they could to keep it, taking advantage of a lack of jobs to lure people in to work for horrible low wages to make a larger profit. Police worked with the landowners, and the trickle down economy was damned and clogged by the upper class. Families such as the Joads were forced to move where the jobs were, and it was rough business. Families fell apart, starved and ended in despair . In such a rough time for the US, the American Dream was probably at its most strongest point. The search for wealth and stability in an open market strengthened, as families relied on each other to complete the machine of a working family. Survival relied on hard work, the "9-5" group, the manual labor jobs and ditch diggers. Despite the world weighing heavy on the Joads, they never quit.
The film touches on issues that we can still relate to today. The middle class has been the center of talk in politics, but still feels the pressure of the American economy. Poverty is a real problem that many turn a blind eye to, with the lack of jobs and education available to those without much experience, the hole of poverty is almost impossible to climb out of. In this new age, hard work and manual labor cannot suffice for a honest living. Advancing technology has changed the way we hire individuals, putting more and more pressure on the middle class to rise above the bar, or fall below.