A
film review by James Berardinelli for ReelViews.net.
Giant makes for an
interesting case study of a classic
American motion picture. Although it was a huge financial success for Warner
Brothers, the prints were allowed to fall into a shocking state of disrepair
over the years. And Giant's
reputation, which is based in part on a host of positive reviews and 10 Academy
Award nominations, greatly exceeds its actual quality. Big, sprawling, and more
than a little sudsy, Giant might have
been remembered as little more than a lavish, big-screen soap opera, except for
one thing -- released posthumously, it was the last feature appearance of icon James Dean. Dean, whose live fast, die young creed cost him his
life in a 1955 car crash, had only three starring roles (East of Eden, Rebel Without a Cause, Giant), but his death accorded
immortality to his image.
The
restoration of Giant, using the
Technicolor dye transfer printing process, was a colossal effort, and the
results are impressive. There are a number of noticeable variations in color
and contrast, but the print is clean and glitch-free. However, unlike several
other recent restorations (like The Wild
Bunch), no edited scenes have been re-introduced. The man behind this
resurrection of Giant, director George Stevens' son, has stated that
his father considered the theatrical release to be the perfect cut.
Although
Giant offers a solid evening's
entertainment, it falls short of true brilliance. An epic storyline is not
inherently great. When compared to some of the transcendent films of the era
(for example, those of Bergman, Kurosawa, Ray, and Kubrick), Giant's limitations become apparent.
Because of the mystique surrounding Dean, the movie has achieved a stature out
of proportion with its actual virtues.
Giant, based on Edna Ferber's novel, starts out in
Texas during the early 1920s. What opens as an ode to the Lone Star state
quickly turns into an indictment of an overbearing, racist culture. Giant goes to great pains to illustrate
the callous discrimination faced by women and Mexican-descended Texans. Real men often regarded the former as
property and the latter as sub-human. It was the 19th century cotton plantation
philosophy translated 1000 miles west and 100 years into the future. The
biggest character arc in Giant
focuses on one man's recognition of the narrowness of these views.
That
man is Bick Benedict (Rock Hudson),
a wealthy landowner who presides over a 595,000 acre Texas ranch called the
Benedict Riata. While Bick is in Maryland to purchase a prize stallion, he
becomes enraptured with Leslie Lynnton (Elizabeth
Taylor), an attractive, educated, independent young woman. The two are soon
married and Leslie accompanies Bick back to Texas. Once there, she has trouble
adjusting -- not only to the climate, but to the domestic arrangements. Bick's
sister, Luz (Mercedes McCambridge),
who manages the house, resents Leslie's arrival, and does little to hide her
displeasure. Meanwhile, Leslie befriends a local worker named Jett Rink (James
Dean), a sullen man who falls in love with her. She also begins to take an
interest in the wetbacks living in a
nearby village, even though Bick considers them to be beneath his notice.
Giant chronicles a
quarter-century of life on the Riata Ranch. It follows Bick and Leslie's
relationship from courtship through young parenthood to late middle-age. It
shows Jett's rise from ranch hand to oil tycoon (a well on his small piece of
property pays big dividends). And it illustrates how children don't always
follow in their parents' footsteps. Bick and Leslie's son Jordan (played by a
young Dennis Hopper) elects not to
take over the ranch, opting instead to become a doctor and marry Juana, a Mexican-American girl (played by Elsa Cardenas). And one of their
daughters, Luz, (Carroll Baker)
falls for the aging-but-still-charming Jett.
The
handling of racial intolerance is similar to that of John Sayles' recent Lone Star. In Giant, although the approach is tinged by perceptions that are
forty years out-of-date, it's still surprisingly acute. Leslie is a liberated
free-thinker and, although Bick captures her love in the first reel, it takes
the entire film before he earns her respect by recognizing that Mexican
Americans deserve to be treated as human beings.
Giant is often referred to
as a James Dean film, but, based on
screen time, Dean gets third billing. The movie's portrait of Jett is
incomplete, but what we see is intriguing. He's a lonely man, tortured by envy
and unattainable love. Even when he has amassed enough money to buy almost
anything, he's still profoundly unhappy. Ultimately, his life is an ironic
tragedy, and Dean effectively conveys a certain degree of his bitterness and
world-weariness. However, Jett's plight doesn't connect with the audience on an
emotional level. We understand it, but aren't moved.
Giant's
protagonist is Leslie. She's the one truly good
person in the film -- a woman of strong, undeniable principles who seeks to
bring reform to Riata, despite the odds. Yet, even though the story is told
from her perspective, the most complex character is Bick, who shows a wide
spectrum of human vices and virtues. He can be sweet and loving or cold and
cruel. There are times when the audience roots for him, and times when they
can't stand him. Hudson's performance is exemplary.
The
state of Texas is as much of a character as Leslie, Bick, and Jett. It's
referred to variously as a different country, the best place on Earth, and a
state of mind. Giant stops short of
lionization, however, taking a number of sharp, cutting jabs at the insular
arrogance of many traditionally-held beliefs. In the end, we're left with the
impression that Texas is changing, but far too slowly, and not always for the
better.
Hollywood
doesn't make films like Giant any
more -- big, melodramatic epics that place storytelling above time constraints.
Aggressive editing could have shortened Giant considerably, but the three hour
twenty-one minute running time permits the tale to breathe. And, even at this
length, there are times when events feel rushed or compressed (for example, Leslie
announces that she's pregnant; in the next scene, she's holding the baby). So,
although Giant may not be a classic
in the purest sense of the word, it's a fine example of a virtually-extinct
genre. [Berardinelli’s rating: *** out of 4 stars]
Labels:
drama, period, western
No comments:
Post a Comment