seen july 8 , 1998 at the crossgates cinema 18 , ( albany , ny ) , theater #7 , at 8 : 15 p . m . with my mom using hoyts cinema cash . [theater rating : * * * 1/2 : very good sound , picture , and seats] it's very rare that any medium of entertainment can give one an authentic , vivid sense of reality and life . all stories are about select moments of time and places in the characters' lives , but only the truly great ones are able to define their realities well enough so the audience can experience it just as the characters do . therefore , " gone with the wind " <POS> deserves accolades for its ability to tell the epic story it does , in such a crafted , intricate , and entertaining manner </POS> . it's a <POS> crowning achievement </POS> , not only in filmmaking , but for storytelling itself . the film takes place in georgia before , during , and after the civil war . this plays a major factor in the film's success . to use such a historic setting presents many possibilities and problems since no one was alive at the time to verify its accuracy . it might also seem cliche , boring and other such deterent factors to potential viewers . can a story set so long ago be relatable now ? the film confronts all these problems , paradoxically , by not cronfronting them . it doesn't simply plug in the " right thing " at the " right time , " it creates an entire reality where everything makes sense and said concerns are irrelevant . building a strong foundation is important to all forms of media , without which , what is there to build on ? we're given some backstory here and learn a little about our characters , especially our main character , scarlett o'hara ( leigh ) , a beautiful southern belle with a will of steel , a cunning wit , and a tremendous sense of liberty in such an oppressive time . she knows how her society works , wherein everything she does can and will play a role in the shaping of her life and those around her . right from the beginning we realize how determined she is to have her way no matter what the consequences may be . being the most sought-after woman allows her to manipulate men ( and their women ) to ensure she gets her way , whether it be obvious ( i . e . who will be the one to get her food ) , or subtle ( i . e . getting married just to spite someone ) . the man she claims to love is ashley wilkes ( howard ) , a modest gentleman who does not seem to have the same passion for her as she does for him . he isn't so arrogant and demanding as scarlett , in fact , he's engaged to a woman with a personality much more like his . her name is melanie ( de havilland ) , and she is one of the sweetest , kindest , and most likable characters one will ever see . she and scarlett become very dear friends , but she never suspects the jealously scarlett has for her , and the love she has for her husband . her meekness is both her strongest and weakest characteristic - it defines who she is , but doesn't give her much emotional self-defense . acting a catalyst to the love triangle , and to the story as a whole is the daper , stong-willed , cunning , cocky southern business and military man captain rhett butler ( gable ) . he's quite a character all right - everyone listens to what he has to say even though he's got a bad reputation . butler makes no apologies for his vast amount of money nor his behavior . he tells everyone the much-needed truth in the rigid caste-like society where freewill doesn't seem to exist , everything is done out of honor and tradition . for example , in his first appearance butler tells his fellow southerners there's no way the south could defeat the north if war were to break out . this angers them , not for his lack of faith , but because he has the gall to say it aloud and boastfully at that . " do we have ammunition factories ? do we have food ? do we have a navy ? all we have is tobacco . " all true statements and yet the south still insists he's wrong . butler is a shifty character to be sure , but he takes such pride in his arrogance it's appealing . scarlett notices this too when she first sees him , and from the look butler gives her , we know he's not going to stop until he has her . but scarlett can't get past her need for ashley , and during a scene which sets the stage for the grand story , butler learns of this and continues to throw it back at scarlett forever . and so the story goes on , with scarlett being thrown obstacle after obstacle in her life . the conflicts she must overcome range from taking care of her entire family to finding a proper husband , especially after she is " marked " for life when her first husband dies . this gives the film many opportunities to bring in more characters into the epic story . some are vital for only a few scenes , but their true signifcance will endure throughout the film . in most films only a few characters exist for support in background , but this film is more realistic and believable as it incorporates a supporting cast the size of a small town and everyone has signficance . even people in the background seem more than just extras wandering the set . <POS> the costuming design is outstanding </POS> so that the film makes for a real sense of time and place . the filmmakers could have easily set more scenes indoors and narrowly focused to avoid having to show the outside , real world , but these types of simple approaches are never taken . the first half of the film depicts the traumatic experience the south faced at the last days of the civil war . fleming is able to convey the horror of it all by painting an image of destruction and letting the viewer decide just how bad it is . one scene has scarlett working as a nurse at a military hospital while we hear a soldier in the background screaming , " no ! not my leg ! don't cut off my leg ! " another scene shows her simplying trying to cross a street , but as the camera pulls back , we see that her path is blocked by hundreds of wounded soldiers , but it is their moaning that's more graphic than all the bloody gore could ever be . as the second half begins , the film concentrates more on scarlett as a completely independent woman who single-handedly takes care of her family and melanie just to spite the tyrany of the north . she manages to resurrect the family plantation , but all the willpower she has can't help her when she must pay exuberhant taxes set by the north after the south's ultimate defeat . this brings rhett butler back into the picture and thus begins their torrid love- hate relationship . most of the second half of the film is somehow related to the relationship ( or lack thereof ) between rhett and scarlett . each uses the other for personal gain , but at the same time they still feel an intimate connection with each other . scarlett continues to use her manipulative powers over men to get what she wants and because rhett can't help but want her more every time she tries to one-up him such as marrying another man and taking over his business . they say opposites attract , but the conflict between rhett and scarlett goes way beyond opposing personalities , it borders on magnetic polarization . they need each other and know this , yet they never seem truly happy together . perhaps they mistake love for passion , and the film leaves it up to us to make this call . both have things the other wants and vice versa , but when they compromise , is it just to get their own way or because they actually care for each other . love and the perception of love are two completely separate things and throughout the final act of the film , we're left wondering if rhett and scarlett ever truly loved each other and why . gable and leigh <POS> do have great chemistry </POS> , always leaving the viewer wondering which emotions were authentic and which were manufacture . all ? none ? either way is possible and it's a mystery that cannot be solved even upon repeated viewings . it's safe to say most of us won't live such overly dramatic lives as those in " gone with the wind , " but it's <POS> still a masterpiece </POS> for its ability to give us a sense that we've just experienced a life's worth of joy and pain .
