I finished it last night, and although I struggled at some parts, it was worth its time. Such a wonderful, tragic story about love and loss and all the pain caused by war.
I have to say, I barely knew anything about the American Civil War before I read this and I'm always interested in society of other times, so it worked as a great historical epic too.
My favorite characters:
Rhett: I liked him from the first minute, because he was unconventional, funny and enjoyed annoying the others. It was so sad when he became a wreck with all the things that happened.
Melanie: Not so much at the beginning, but she turns out so kind, unselfish, supportive and strong-hearted that well, how can you not like her?
Will: We didn't see much of him, but I really liked him because he was so supportive and good-hearted and there was a certain sense of calmness about him, if you understand what I mean.
Mammy: Well, what can I say about her? She was something else, wasn't she?
About Scarlett. I admired her strength and determination, but overall she comes off as an unlikable character. She's selfish, often foolish
, she tortures the people who love her and has wrong priorities in her life, and of course she's ruined in the end by these things.
I found interesting the way Mitchell builds the story. All the characters' actions are like pieces of puzzle that unite in the end.
And some last thoughts:
I think Ellen was only half happy in her life. Scarlett always saw her as a saintly figure, but I think that this was mostly due to the fact that half her life was drained out of her when Phillipe died, after all she called for him in her deathbed.
I didn't really like the film. This probably sounds weird, but the melodramatism of it put me off. The only truly good thing about it is that it made me appreciate Mammy (thanks to Hattie McDaniel, who really stole every scene she was in).