Reflections on Gone with the Wind

They're showing Gone with the Wind. I love that movie. If you haven't watched it, I urge you to. Strongly. It's just such a classic of cinema. Vivian Leigh has such a quality to her face - not so much beauty as this ability to be both innocent and cunning at the same time. The sets are amazing. The dresses are amazing; how did women walk in those? Worse yet, how did they tinkle? The thing I like best about the movie is that Scarlett O'Hara is such a witch with a B. It'd hard to remember that she's the heroine of the piece when it seems she's scheming, manipulating and hurting people left and right. There's almost nothing redeemable about her behavior. Yet, the thing is, she's just a woman thwarted by love. Fickle as hell, she manages to stay faithful to Ashley Wilkes through - geez, practically everything, including his marriage, her marriage(s), the burning of Atlanta and carpetbaggers. That takes some grit, especially from a woman used to only flouncing around in a pretty dress. There's something about love that really brings out the backbone in people - I contend that it brings out both the best and worst sides of you. Look at Scarlett - it was her love for Ashley and her plantation Tara that sustained her throughout the movie. I think being in love brings out the best and worst in me. The best would be me at my happiest, my most nurturing, my most selfless. The worst would be...well, the normal me raised by a factor of ten. I'm cruel, petulant, bossy, angry, foul-mouthed, delusional and always just a few cents shy of a dollar. See why I hate being in love? If I were Scarlett, I would've lost Tara, Rhett and my mind, all within the space of twenty minutes. That's what love does to me. All right, off to see Rhett and Scarlett fight and fall in love.

Final thought: My favorite line? Or course, "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn."