I recently saw Showboat and Gone with the Wind, as well as most of Oklahoma, all movies I had missed up until now, but all were important parts of my wife’s childhood. Her family is very southern, and I had always avoided a lot of Americana, but most especially things to do with either the south or cowboys. I imagined myself more as a British citizen, culturally, and steeped myself in the traditions and literature of Albion.

    But, having caught up at last to some of that kitchy American junk from the despised south (I am as much a Yankee as my wife is a southerner), I found that it was actually rather wonderful. The stories were all very moving and very much deserve their reputation. And they helped me have a greater sympathy for and understanding of some corners of our culture I had previously ignored. They really are great stories and should be treasured.

   The characters are what really drive them. They’re the white hot fire in their bellies. If you want to talk about having character arcs, those are some great stories, Showboat and Gone with the Wind in particular. Oklahoma surprised me with how high-concept the darn thing was, for such a silly little story. It helped me see the great drama in the little things, in the simple lives of simple people. But the other two have some crazy character arcs and development. More in one film than many modern franchises get around to in ten films. The people are the drama and the action. 

   Melanie from Gone is probably one of the great “white knight” characters of all cinema. She’s idealistic, but not naive. She’s courageous, but not aggressive. She’s a real hero. She enters the dragon’s den on more than one occasion to save Scarlet’s life, and in her final attempt she actually dies. Scarlet herself is both the hero and the villain of the movie, and a lot of credit for her heroism goes to the one person who she resented most and understood least, Melanie. 

    There’s really not too much to say about these movies except that people should watch them.