Many of the movies on this AFI top 100 list are based off of books. Funny enough, some of them are much more remembered for the movie they inspired, like The Godfather and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and then others retain their greatest remembrance in book form, like this one here.

I’ve been covering movies on the list that I hadn’t seen yet and giving my first impression on them. And slightly embarrassingly, this is one of them.

Now I have read the book before. Ok, some of the book; it wasn’t assigned at my high school. But the movie was never something I tackled because it felt like it would be walking into a homework assignment.

And I suppose since I’m doing this list, it still is homework, but it’s at least homework that I’m enjoying doing.

So here we are with 1940’s The Grapes of Wrath, written by John Steinbeck and directed by John Ford.

When I’ve written about some of the satire movies, I’ve mentioned how they tend to wear their message on their sleeve sinces all of the humor within the film is dependent on that message.

There’s another type of movie that also rides its message as hard: political ones.

And although some may say it’s not a true political movie, it does come very close. It’s no secret from reading the book or watching this movie that the message is “the only way we can overcome evil is to come together.”

I mean, Tom becomes the living manifestation of this message. He brings everyone together and at the end. This is especially highlighted by his famous monologue at the end. He essentially becomes a symbol of this message.

The characters are constantly encountering evil with no “bad guy” representation other than the system itself. When the Joad’s house is about to be destroyed and they’re trying to find out who the mustache-twirling villain is that’s causing this, it becomes apparent that there’s not one. It’s not the boss’ fault because he’s obligated to the bank. It’s not the bank owner’s fault because he’s obligated to the stockholders, who need to make their own living, etc. 

There’s not much I can say about the The Grapes of Wrath (and Steinbeck) that hasn’t been said before, but it is worth noting how unabashedly the film wields the message. It’ll even take a moment to show two random gas station attendants have a conversation about how they view the “Okies” as inhuman just to further that message.

A good question to ask might be why this book turned to film works so well, while a few other classics, like Of Mice and Men and 1984 haven’t worked quite as well as movies (although they’re respected movies are worth watching).

My hunch is that part of the reason is that the book also works as a beloved movie genre: a road trip movie.

For a little over the first half, the family is on a destination: to get to California.

They have several adventures along the way, including a couple deaths and a struggle against the law.

Like all big movies, it has big memorable characters, including Henry Fonda, John Carradine, and Jane Darwell.

Even when they get to California, they’re not done having to move and get to their destination.

In a way, it has the same building blocks as National Lampoon’s Vacation. You know, just a really dark version of one of the Vacation Movies. Although that one also has an old woman dying, so maybe I should maybe just say “less comedic” instead.

The Grapes of Wrath will probably always be remembered as a book first and a movie second; however, that doesn’t mean that the movie isn’t also incredibly influential.

John Ford does an awesome job. Especially since his beliefs weren’t completely in line with Steinbeck’s, it serves to create balance that’s a bit more palatable for all audiences.

It’s dark and makes the viewer think, but it also is fun and entertaining at the same time. 

And Ma’s speech at the end is unforgettable. She talks about how things will go on and on, generation by generation–much like how their journey to California wasn’t so much the destination they thought, but a means to a greater end.

This idea that we’ll keep going and maybe get a little bit better with each generation actually leaves the viewer (me at least) feeling uplifted, especially contrasted against much of the darkness before.

It was a nice experience that although I was still technically doing homework, it was homework that left me happy. No sour grapes here.

Thanks for reading!

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