Gone with the Wind' reignites debate as Hollywood wrestles with its history
"Gone with the Wind" remains the highest-grossing movie of all time when adjusted for inflation and won 10 Oscars, including the primary ever for an African-American performer, supporting actress Hattie McDaniel.
The 1939 movie -- adapted from Margaret Mitchell's bestselling novel set during the war -- also contains numerous problematic elements that haven't aged well, from stereotyped depictions of African Americans to the talk over whether the staircase scene between Rhett and Scarlett, which concludes off screen, was a case of marital rape.
"Gone with the Wind" is that the latest movie to face renewed concerns about its exposure within the 21st century, as studios mine their libraries to stock the shelves of latest streaming services. The controversy over that erupted again in the week , as HBO Max, the new service from CNN parent WarnerMedia, announced that it had been temporarily pulling the movie from its rotation.
The film will return, a spokesperson said, with "a discussion of its historical context" and denunciation of its racially charged aspects. The movie itself won't be altered.
The announcement followed a l. a. Times oped by filmmaker John Ridley, who noted that the film "glorifies the antebellum south" and perpetuates "some of the foremost painful stereotypes of individuals of color."
Disney has already publicly wrestled with these issues in launching its streaming service, Disney+, opting to not include the 1946 film "Song of the South," another title that romanticized the Old South . Disney+ has made other movies available, like "Dumbo," with a disclaimer that reads, "This program is presented as originally created. it's going to contain outdated cultural depictions."
Seeking to contextualize old films isn't a replacement issue for WarnerMedia. The company's stable of cable networks includes Turner Classic Movies, which presents such films with hosts who introduce and discuss them.
Notably, the new Netflix series "Hollywood" zeroes in thereon topic, with McDaniel -- who was segregated from her white co-stars at the Academy Awards -- featured as a minor character within the fictionalized retelling.
The questions surrounding "Gone with the Wind" actually predated the film.
Debate immediately ensued over the 1936 publication of Mitchell's novel, with its nostalgia for plantation life, portrayal of happy slaves and threatening freed blacks, and sympathy toward the Confederate cause.
As the Washington Post's Alyssa Rosenberg noted, even McDaniel's award-winning performance "couldn't wholly transcend the trope of a loyal slave who rejects freedom and prefers to serve her former owners."
Weighing the movie's negatives versus its merits -- including Vivien Leigh's portrayal of the long-lasting heroine Scarlett O'Hara -- Rosenberg concluded it's "the one Confederate monument worth saving."
The discussion of what to try to to with movies like "Gone with the Wind" arose again in 2017, when a theater in Memphis, Tenn., opted to drop it from a screening series after the Unite the proper rally in Charlottesville, Va.
"You can't sweep history under the rug," USC professor of media and cinema studies Todd Boyd told the l. a. Times at the time, adding. "But it is vital to possess context whenever you're viewing material of this type . Otherwise, people can embrace and celebrate it without handling the entire truth."
That process are often messy, and it inevitably invites criticism -- especially from conservatives wanting to portray Hollywood liberals as bowing to involves censorship. Accused of insensitivity within the past, it's possible to interact in what can appear as if overreactions within the present.
But there is a difference between context and censorship. If the simplest answer to potentially offensive speech or art is more speech or art, facilitating a broader conversation a few classic like "Gone with the Wind" -- which may be a far cry from sweeping it away -- represents an inexpensive solution.
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