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Henry Fonda, Jane Darwell, John Carradine, Charles Grapewin, Doris Bowden ... see more see more... , Russell Simpson , O.Z. Whitehead , John Qualen , Eddie Quillan , Zeffie Tilbury , Frank Sully , Frank Darien , Darryl Hickman , Shirley Mills , Roger Imhof , Grant Mitchell , Charles D. Brown , John Arledge , Wally Albright , Erville Alderson , Arthur Ayleswofth , Irving Bacon , Trevor Bardette , Ward Bond , Cliff Clark , Shirley "Muggsy" Coates , Harry Cording , Ralph Dunn , Thornton Edwards , Frank Faylen , Pat Flaherty , James Flavin , Paul Guilfoyle , William Haade , Ben Hall , Herbert Heywood , Robert E. Homans , Selmar Jackson , Rex Lease , Mae Marsh , Louis Mason , Walter McGrail , Charles B. Middleton , Walter Miller , Adrian Morris , George O'Hara , Ted Oliver , Inez Palange , William Pawley , Gaylord "Steve" Pendleton , Dick Rich , Gloria Roy , Peggy Ryan , Lee Shumway , Georgia Simmons , Harry Strang , Paul Sutton , Charles Tannen , Harry Tenbrook , Harry Tyler , Tom Tyler , Eddy Waller , Norman Willis , George Breakston , Francis Ford , David Hilary Hughes , Frank O'Connor , Jack Pennick , Joe Sawyer , Kitty McHugh , Robert "Buddy" Shaw , Hollis Jewell

The adaptation of Nobel Prize-winner John Steinbeck's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of dirt-poor Dust Bowl migrants by 4-time Oscar-winning director John Ford starred Henry Fonda as Tom Joad, who opens... read more read more... the movie returning to his Oklahoma home after serving jail time for manslaughter. En route, Tom meets family friend Casey (John Carradine), a former preacher who warns Tom that dust storms, crop failures, and new agricultural methods have financially decimated the once prosperous Oklahoma farmland. Upon returning to his family farm, Tom is greeted by his mother (Oscar-winner Jane Darwell), who tells him that the family is packing up for the "promised land" of California. Warned that they shouldn't expect a warm welcome in California--they've already seen the caravan of dispirited farmers, heading back home after striking out at finding work--the Joads push on all the same. Their first stop is a wretched migrant camp, full of starving children and surrounded by armed guards. Further down the road, the Joads drive into an idyllic government camp, with clean lodging, indoor plumbing, and a self-governing clientele. When Tom ultimately bids goodbye to his mother, who asks him where he'll go, he delivers the film's most famous speech: "I'll be all around...Wherever there's a fight so hungry people can eat...Whenever there's a cop beating a guy, I'll be there...And when the people are eatin' the stuff they raise and livin' in the houses they build. I'll be there too." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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86% liked it

21,394 ratings

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100% liked it

39 critics

Unrated, 2 hr. 9 min.

Directed by: John Ford

Release Date: March 15, 1940

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DVD Release Date: April 6, 2004

Stats: 1,149 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,149)

  • fb1664868775
    March 7, 2012
    fb1664868775
    An amazing film. Just as relevant today.
  • blkbomb
    January 28, 2012
    blkbomb
    Casy: I wouldn't pray just for a old man that's dead, 'cause he's all right. If I was to pray, I'd pray for folks that's alive and don't know which way to turn. 

    The Grapes of Wrath is very much the classic I was expecting. It is probably the best example of the human struggle t... read moreo better one's life. The story is one of the most known, as most read it before their out of high school. It's setting is the depression era dust bowl. There's a lot of bad going on and not a whole lot of good. Everyone struggles to find work so that they can feed their families. But work isn't easy to come by. Watching The Grapes of Wrath now, during this economic climate is rather sobering.

    The story follows one family, the Joad family. Tom has just been released from prison and makes it home just in time; right before his family was to set off from their land. They have lived in Oklahoma all their life, but the land is turning a profit or any crops and the government is taking it away from them. So the Joad's decide to do what everyone else is doing, and head for California in hope of finding the land they were promised. Handbills don't always tell the exact truth though. California is just as much a struggle as Oklahoma.

    This is only the second John Ford film I have seen, but I'm already seeing why he is so highly regarded. He captures the hardship of the depression like no film I've seen. He does it extremely well, but also never overplays it. He let's the Joad family speak for themselves. Their hungry, their tired, and their poor. 

    Something else Ford does really well is showing the different ends of the spectrum, when it comes to people helping people. Their are always people that will help and their are always people that will exploit. In one scene the Joad's go into a diner and the workers there give them food at a discounted cost because they see how hard they got it. Then when they actually get work, all the employers are just exploiting how poor the workers are. 

    Grapes of Wrath is often regarded as one of the best American films ever. It's a movie that everyone knows about and it's influence is just about everywhere. It's one of those movies that everyone almost has to see before they die; a true classic in every sense of the word.
  • fb733768972
    December 9, 2011
    fb733768972
    The Grapes Of Wrath is one of the greatest films that I have ever seen. During the great depression, a suffering family is forced to move out of their homes as they are torn down one-by-one. Lead by a moving performance by Henry Fonda who is out of prison on early parole, the "Jo... read moreads" are on route to California, where they believe they can find work and restart their lives. Along the way, they mourn loses of loved ones and cherish whatever they have to survive. They make stops in campgrounds and pitch tents so that they may have a place to keep warm enough through the night. As the worst possible occurences come their way, Tom (Fonda) finds himself killing a man, which then leads to him having to make decisions of where to move next. This is one of the most moving pictures of all time. The cinematography makes you feel that you are in every situation and the dialogue will make you cringe. It is wonderfully written and the direction by John Ford is heart-stopping. There is never a dull moment in this film. I would be underrating this film by calling it a masterful breakthrough in cinema, because the only word to describe this work of art, is "Spine-tinglingly, awe-inspiringly, magnificent!"
  • fb619846742
    August 3, 2011
    fb619846742
    A bonafide classic which serves as a forceful reminder to the importance of family, employment, and a civilization fighting together to survive amongst Hellish circumstances. Ford's sure-handed camera-work combined with masterful acting by Henry Fonda as the legendary character T... read moreom Joad, alongside Jane Darwell's Ma Joad who embodies the definition of a matriarch, makes this film a masterstroke which resonates well in any period of economic downturn or uncertainty. It takes its time, for sure, but the gripping performances and absorbing material of the story make this a film not to be missed, and one that ends on an appropriate note
  • jennifxu
    April 29, 2011
    jennifxu
    Sometimes I feel like it goes too much for the dirty regionalism/Dust Bowl desperation and too little of actual character development of the Joad family.
  • hobster1
    April 14, 2011
    hobster1
    Heartbreakingly beautiful adaptation of John Steinbeck's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of a poor family of sharecroppers from Oklahoma who lose their land and must travel West in search of a better life. Set during the Great Depression, the story opens when Tom Joad returns to his... read more family's farm only to find it deserted. He soon learns farmers all over the area have been forced from their land by the deed holders. In a flashback we see a heartbreaking scene where a local boy is hired to drive a Caterpillar tractor right through a farmer's home knocking it down like a house of cards. It's a frustrating image and one that only hints at the hardships they're about to experience.

    The Grapes of Wrath is arguably the most epic film to tackle the plight of the Midwest farmer during the Dust Bowl. The script masterfully takes a complicated subject and centers the focus on the Joad family, a group we come to love and identify with. They radiate goodness and dignity. Somber and bleak, their helplessness is presented in devastating detail. When the family arrives at the first transient migrant campground for workers, the conditions they find are less than desirable: the camp is overcrowded with other starving and jobless travelers. The desperation is palpable. The brilliant cinematography recalls real depression era images of photographers like Dorothea Lange and Arthur Rothstein. The movie's release in 1940 was a particularly impressive document considering the Great Depression had only ended a year earlier with the advent of WWII.

    Everyone in the production is memorable. Director John Ford won the Oscar for directing. So too actress, Jane Darwell as Ma Joad, the tenacious matriarch. And let's not forget how fascinating it is to see John Carradine, patriarch of the real life acting dynasty, in his first important role as an ex-preacher who has lost his faith. But what grounds the story is Henry Fonda's performance as Tom Joad. Just released from prison his heartfelt performance becomes an almost mythic hero of social justice. The Grapes of Wrath is one of those films that surpasses its literary source and actually improves on the novel's pessimistic tone. There is much despair, but there is also an uplifting feeling of hope. Tom Joad's poetic final speech is legendary.
  • mjgildea
    November 26, 2009
    mjgildea
    The Grapes of Wrath is definitely a fantastic movie but also a daunting and rough watch. Henry Fonda yet again makes me want to kick my own ass for not becoming a fan of his sooner and John Ford's direction is magnificent. But the real standout for me was Gregg Toland's cinematog... read moreraphy. From the opening shot to the final image this film is a visual work of art. Visual feast aside, I don't know if I can take a viewing of this more than once every 5 years (the scene with the kids begging for food alone was murder) but its absolutely worth your time if you haven't seen it.
  • MeetMeinMontauk
    May 24, 2009
    MeetMeinMontauk
    I surprisingly liked it. Didn't think I would.
  • tsigur
    March 4, 2009
    tsigur
    My fucking que has been on fire as of late with some classic films. John Ford's masterpiece is just as effective today (especially today) as it ever was. Henry Fonda is amazing as Tom Joad (now I know what that Springsteen song was about) and Jane Darwell as Ma Joad is the tradem... read moreark mother and she plays it perfectly. I am a big fan of John Stienbeck and thought the movie portrayed everything that was great about the book (of course some things are going to be lost, but you remember the size of that book). Again, I also think the cinematography was one of the main reasons I enjoyed this film so much. It really pulled me into the story that much more. Sorry that I have not experienced this movie sooner.
  • DerekA101
    January 26, 2009
    DerekA101
    The Grapes of Wrath is a well-crafted 1940's classic that followed a poor Mid-Western families quest to California after being evicted off their property during the troubling Great Depression era.

    A heart-wrenching, and brutally honest tale, this film will leave you baff... read moreled about how the poor were treated during this period of time.

    This film was superbly acted for it's age, and the cinematography was classic. The use of lighting in this film was ground-breaking. It's a wonderful cinematic achievement. However, my only complaint was that it was quite the snoozefest! You are guaranteed to check your watch more than once.

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Critic Reviews

Dave Kehr
April 27, 2009
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

Ford's admirers have rightly tended to play this down in favor of his later and more personal westerns, but there's much to admire here in Gregg Toland's sun-beaten photography and Henry Fonda's metic... Full Review

April 27, 2009
TIME Magazine

The Grapes of Wrath is possibly the best picture ever made from a so-so book. Full Review

John C. Flinn Sr.
March 26, 2009
John C. Flinn Sr., Variety

It is an absorbing, tense melodrama, starkly realistic, and loaded with social and political fireworks. Full Review

Frank S. Nugent
May 20, 2003
Frank S. Nugent, New York Times

The Grapes of Wrath is just about as good as any picture has a right to be; if it were any better, we just wouldn't believe our eyes.

Roger Ebert
April 14, 2002
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

The Grapes of Wrath was often named the greatest American film, until it was dethroned by the re-release of Citizen Kane. Full Review

Wesley Lovell
August 16, 2011
Wesley Lovell, Oscar Guy

Back when they adapted serious literature for the big screen, the results were equally impressive. Full Review

Nell Minow
December 28, 2010
Nell Minow, Common Sense Media

Classic John Steinbeck adaptation is still powerful. Full Review

Chuck Bowen
November 22, 2010
Chuck Bowen, Slant Magazine

The Grapes of Wrath is flawed, but it captures that shiver of panic that grips anyone for whom the money for the next meal is unknown. Full Review

April 27, 2009
Film4

This 1940 film is one of the best literary adaptations ever (and one of the quickest too -- it was in theaters within a year of the book's publication). Full Review

Dan Jardine
October 30, 2006
Dan Jardine, Apollo Guide

What really solidifies the greatness of The Grapes of Wrath is Ford's ability to blend the personal and political without causing damage to either characters or themes. Full Review

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    • Ma Joad: Rich fellas come up an' they die, an' their kids ain't no good an' they die out. But we keep a'comin'. We're the people that live. They can't wipe us out; they can't lick us. We'll go on forever, Pa, 'cause we're the people.
    • Tom Joad: Wherever there's a fight so hungry people can eat, I'll be there.
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The Grapes of Wrath Trivia

  • Who starred as Tom Joad in "The Grapes of Wrath"?  Answer »
  • Who wrote the original novel for the Grapes of Wrath?  Answer »
  • Who played Tom Joad in the movie The Grapes of Wrath?  Answer »
  • Who directed 1940's "The Grapes of Wrath," starring Henry Fonda, based on the book by John Steinbeck?  Answer »
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