Oscar Winning Movies

Join our journey as we watch all the Oscar winning movies from 1927 to the present.

Monday, September 3, 2012

1941 - How Green Was My Valley: "Tis a coward I am. But I will hold your coat"


1941 Best Picture Winner

Premiered October 28, 1941 in New York

Budget: $1.25 Million
Gross: $6 Million


I went into this movie excited because this film beat out Citizen Kane and Sergent York. I thought that it must be something special to beat out two excellent movies. I was wrong. How Green Was My Valley is an awful movie. The production values were about 5 years behind the standard that Gone With The Wind had set. The story was not that good either.
The story is a combination of A Christmas Story and Newsies. It is a story of innocence lost: the boy, Huw, coming of age and the town losing its innocence with the coal miners strike. The only good character in the movie is the preacher who stands up for truth in the face of adversity.

Callie
Favorite: There was some comic relief set by two men who were teaching Huw to box to protect himself.
Least Favorite: The spontaneous singing throughout the movie. From the beginning with Angharad singing poorly and throughout it did not enhance the film or the plot. 

Joel
Favorite: I like the fact that the preacher stands up for truth against the wicked members of his church. He believes so strongly in the truth that he leaves his job rather than be a part of the hypocrisy.
Least Favorite: The camera angels and special affects were years behind the pace that had been set by the previous two winners.

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