The Grapes of Wrath

Synopsis

"In this towering classic of American cinema, common man Tom Joad (Henry Fonda) leads his family on a harrowing journey from the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma to the promise of a better life in California. Based on John Steinbeck's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and masterfully directed by John Ford, the stirring drama also stars Oscar winner Jane Darwell as Ma Joad and John Carradine as the fallen preacher Casy." [Netflix]
"The large Joad family of twelve leaves at daybreak, along with Casy, who decides to accompany them. They pack everything into a dilapidated 1926 Hudson "Super Six" sedan adapted to serve as a truck in order to make the long journey to the promised land of California." [Wikipedia]
"And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth,, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God." [Revelation 14:19] "Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord. He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored." [Battle Hymn of the Republic] I liked this movie because it takes you back to the 1930s to see a poor family. The movie was made in 1940, so there was no barrier to depicting the setting of the depression in Oklahoma and California. Steinbeck was raised in the Episcopal Church, but he became an agnostic. Jim Casey, a major character in the story, was a minister, but lost his faith. He says at one point that he is now free to investigate the truth, and this apparently jives with the "non-teleological thinking" promoted by Steinbeck's friend, Ed Ricketts.

Genre

Historical

Released

1940

Location

North America

Period

Oklahoma and California during the Great Depression;

No