Wild River

that series of images toward the end comment so definitively on the double-edged sword of progress in america that there was no need for anyone else to tackle the subject ever again. i still can't quite fathom how nuanced and wise and humane this film is, from its overarching political throughlines down to its small details of character and place. not to mention one of the most authentic, thorny love stories ever to emerge out of hollywood: "you're not easy to love, but you do need someone..."

I didn't think this was anything more than ok. Some of the acting was good, but the romantic part of it was kind of annoying.

A fine film about the TVA with great Tennessee location photography and atmosphere. Remick is lovely, Clift is at his best, but the great thing about this movie is 41-year-old Jo Van Fleet's performance as an 80-year-old woman who stubbornly refuses to be moved from her island home.

Surrounds a compelling core conflict that is ripe for thematic exploration, but the film spends far too long on the romance subplot that is not believable and, frankly, a little creepy

Excellent Kazan, with deep, multilayered characters and the kind of southern coded melodramatic but raw and authentic feeling mood that Kazan was so good at. Fits well with Kazan's other work during the period, like Baby Doll and East of Eden. Jo Van Fleet, who totally convincingly plays the grandmother reluctant to sell her land, was amazingly only 44 here. It required hours of makeup and a great performance to make that work, but work it does.

The film excels in 3 regards: a balanced and engaging story (script), enactment and good casting, direction in executing the needed pace to make it gripping. The unbiased presentation of equally compelling arguments from both sides of the conflict with purposeful omission of authorial commentary on who's right and who's wrong, is excellent in a very judge-like sense in the best Christian tradition. Unlike what the media does nowadays - blasting heavy ideological pieces, disregarding balance.

Ending spoilers. Wow, this was frustrating. The only interesting part of this was the main dude's relationship with Carol, but then he reveals he was planning to leave her immediately after the job was done? Why? Why did he even get involved with her then? Can he not think more than 2 days in advance? He didn't consider what would happen afterwards? The only likeable character in this was Carol, and her only traits were that she was sweet and liked the main dude. Pointless.

Lee Remick is gorgeous. Stop walking around in front of me!

An emotion stirring, well paced quasi noir with brilliant performances. Especially from Jo Van Fleet! She nails one of the most complex roles I've ever seen, and (somehow) a wicked turn-of-the-century southern accent.

There are the true scenes about what land means to a person, and the pain of letting go of your home, and then there's the melodramatic filler, adding racial tension, redneck bastards and steamy love, to negligible effect.

watched: 2014, 2020

Damn, didn't realize that the grandma was played by a 46 year old. That's some fine acting/makeup to make her look 80. Besides that, the film was pretty slow moving and seemed a lot longer than the 110 minute run time.

87.500

A TVA agent (Montgomery Clift) faces all manner of difficulty in getting a headstrong old farmer (Jo Van Fleet) to sell her land, while his budding romance with her granddaughter (Lee Remick) brings pleasures and problems of its own. It doesn't have the dramatic heft or rich characterization of Kazan's best work, but his brilliant direction--aided in no small part by Ellsworth Fredericks' stunning cinematography--and the all-around fine acting, especially from Remick, make it well worth it.

Well acted, beautifully shot movie. It's a bit of a Sunday afternoon film though. The plot doesn't offer enough of a dilemma, the sub-plots are full of clichés and the pacing is messy.

#889

I officially don't like Montgomery Clift. He's so wooden, boring and uninteresting in everything I see him in. He's not a lead, maybe a bit player but he certainly can't carry a movie. It has some good moments (all the confrontation scenes are good, if not a bit cliched) but it's mainly filled with scenes just missing that magic moment. The cinematography was great though but it needed a new cast and more scenes of Lee Remick getting punched in the face.

All three threads of the plot are very compelling, with some unexpected turns and complex character development. Clift gives a mighty fine performance, and although Remick fails to impress at first, she comes into her own by the end. But the absolute star of the cast is Jo Van Fleet, who does an awful lot with relatively little screen time. Round things off with a lovely score and some surprisingly good cinematography for a Kazan film. A terrific movie about the costs and benefits of progress.

The pacing is a little loose but it's a great film of contrasts. Clift and Remick are both a little stilted but it works out for the film's benefit as their characters are both out of their element and constantly trying to find the best course of action. The little open ended social and political commentary is good too.

Bestand

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# 868

One of Kazan's few color films. It works.