Wild River (1960)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Walter M

  
  In "Wild River," to curb deadly flooding along the Tennessee River and create jobs during the Great Depression, the Roosevelt Administration creates the Tennessee Valley Authority to build dams to control the flow of the river. By 1934, all but one landowner has sold their… More
  In "Wild River," to curb deadly flooding along the Tennessee River and create jobs during the Great Depression, the Roosevelt Administration creates the Tennessee Valley Authority to build dams to control the flow of the river. By 1934, all but one landowner has sold their property, the exception being eighty-year old matriarch Ella Garth(Jo Van Fleet). Chuck Glover(Montgomery Clift) is the third man sent to persuade, not force, her, her family and sharecroppers to vacate before the island is flooded by the closing of the dam's gates. Directed by Elia Kazan, "Wild River" is a well-photographed, if obvious, movie that succeeds by capturing a time and a place without being consdescending towards the rural inhabitants, especially in its use of unadorned faces(Hey, isn't that Bruce Dern?), while also having meaning for the present day. As shown by the opening footage, a documentary approach would have definitely been the way to go. The underlying theme is progress and Glover sometimes forgets exactly where he is in helping not only the white people of the valley who dominate the social structure, but also the blacks who he attempts to hire at the same wages against the wishes of racist businessmen, bringing electricity to all, regardless. He also has to combat Ella and her plantation mentality. She is another force of nature that progress is meant to curb. Without any doubt this is Jo Van Fleet's movie and it suffers badly when she is offscreen which is often, ceding much of the story to a romantic subplot.

• Mike T

  
  Elia Kazan uses color brilliantly in this film, giving it an autumnal tone and atmosphere that emphasizes its quiet sadness. Beautifully subdued and patiently paced, the movie's power settles in a few minutes after the closing credits have rolled. Montgomery Clift's… More
  Elia Kazan uses color brilliantly in this film, giving it an autumnal tone and atmosphere that emphasizes its quiet sadness. Beautifully subdued and patiently paced, the movie's power settles in a few minutes after the closing credits have rolled. Montgomery Clift's performance is outstanding, and he shares great screen chemistry with Lee Remick. I was forced to watch this picture on Youtube, but its potency shone through despite the bad quality of the transfer.

• Henrik S

  
  A good movie which went deeper into the subject matters than I expected. The DVD cover read like a cheap romance pulp novel and I was surprised when the movie addressed issues of racism and old age. Unfortunately, Montogomery Clift's downfall is more than apparent in this picture… More
  A good movie which went deeper into the subject matters than I expected. The DVD cover read like a cheap romance pulp novel and I was surprised when the movie addressed issues of racism and old age. Unfortunately, Montogomery Clift's downfall is more than apparent in this picture and his performance is wooden and stale and almost grotesque at times. One particular scene comes to mind, when Lee Remick (who does a fantastic job) delivers a powerful monologue and Clift more or less drops off of the screen, that is how bad he is. I have always been fond of him, sincing seeing him in Red River when I was a kid. Here and then, Kazan's talent shines through and some scenes are powerful compositions illustrating the relationship between man and nature and Kazan uses fog, light and the remoteness of Tennesse to great effect. The ending is a bit inconclusive but at least it is not some Hollywood serving of candy-colour cheesecake. All in all, a good movie which could have been great with a better cast, as Lee Remick cannot pull the weight alone. HX

• cody f

  
  This film is kind of all over the place and with Monty and Kazan at the helm it's a big disappointment. I like the idea of the story and it had some potential, but they had to ruin it by adding a love story and civil rights story. Monty works for the government in the 30's… More
  This film is kind of all over the place and with Monty and Kazan at the helm it's a big disappointment. I like the idea of the story and it had some potential, but they had to ruin it by adding a love story and civil rights story. Monty works for the government in the 30's and their about to build a dam and flood the Tennessee Valley. This is for the sake of progress and everyone has agreed to move except for stubborn Jo Van Fleet and it's Monty's job to get her out. That would be a fine story,but throw in a strange love story with the beautiful Lee Remick and town folk upset because blacks and whites are getting the same pay is too much for one movie. At times this film shines,but goes off subject too many times. It looks great, good acting, and has one of the strangest fight scenes I have ever seen.