Wrong with the Wind
I recently saw Gone with the Wind for the first time. As the ending credits rolled, I sat slack-jawed in stunned silence. I hated it. Loathed it. Saw it as a waste of four precious hours I could never get back.
Scarlett O’Hara has all the redeeming qualities of a cockroach, right down to her sheer hardiness. If a nuclear bomb fell on her beloved homestead, Tara, she could crawl out unscathed and turn the plantation into a profitable clothing factory for the mutant survivors.
I know, I know, main characters can’t be perfect. If they were, no one would want to read the book or watch the movie. But I want to be able to relate. Even if they make a lot of mistakes, I still want to like the main character in some way, shape, or form. The only good thing about Scarlett was her wardrobe. And her uncanny ability to raise one eyebrow while keeping a straight face.
Photo Credit: Wikipedia - Scarlett O'Hara
Maybe I should be giving Margaret Mitchell more credit than I am. As much as I detested Scarlett’s character, at the end, I still wanted Rhett to give a darn about her. I wanted that horrible creature to get her happy ending. But did I get that?
Not even close!
I should mention I also hate bad endings. Open-ended finales are lumped into the bad category. I do not want to make up my own story about what happens with the characters. Because even if I make up a happy ending, I’m not the original creator of the story, therefore my ending doesn’t count. I want to hear straight from the horse’s mouth that Scarlett finally convinced Rhett to give a darn and they lived happily ever after. I don’t think that’s too much to ask. Unfortunately, Margaret Mitchell is no longer living.
So it is too much to ask.
May 4, 2012 8 Comments