O Rio do Desespero

Lotta screenplay issues here. For working so hard on their farm, why do they look so young and fresh and alive - farming must not be that tough. They had a horrible flood at the beginning of the film and another at the end. Why didn't they plan and shore up the levee? Sissy was caught on a tractor for most of the day, arm crunched by a drive train; lost a lot of blood, but a cast for a while and she pops back to tendin the farm. Mel doesn't ask about that. Just a lot of unanswered questions in a shoddy script. Good points: the cinematography is excellent as is the musical score. Oh, and to get money Tom takes a job as a scab in a union steelworkers mill and doesn't realize it?????? It's not a bad movie ~ it's not a good movie ~ it's a depressing movie because you think after all is said and done, they are set up for failure during the next crop season.

Tom and Mae Garvey (Mel Gibson, Sissy Spacek) are the owners of a small eastern Tennessee farm that has been in the Garvey family for generations. It is the early 1980s, when the staggering U.S. economy threatens the welfare of the American family farm. The Garveys' struggles are compounded by the fact that their property is in a flood plain, and by the enmity of Tom's rival Joe Wade (Scott Glenn), who is a wealthy and powerful foe. This is not lighthearted entertainment.

For me, the film's most powerful moments come when cash-strapped Tom has to leave the farm to find work elsewhere. He unknowingly becomes a scab in a factory where the regular labor force is on strike. At least there is a regular paycheck, but the contrast between the man-made hell of a iron foundry/steel mill and the natural beauty of the family farm is compelling, and you can see why the Garveys struggle to hold on to their agricultural way of life, however hard it is. The cinematography for this movie is way above average, a celebration of rural America.

Sissy Spacek delivers her usual fine performance. Mel Gibson is very good-- his Tennessee accent quite convincing. The two youngsters who play their children deserve special praise for their natural performances. This is a good, thoughtful movie-- not romantic, thrilling or exciting-- but one the family can watch together and think what sacrifices they would make to keep a heritage and a way of life preserved.

I'll agree with most of the previous comments on The River, but will also add that the focus of the very last confrontational scene defines for us the essence of the film and brings forth in the heartless protagonist, Mr. Wade, what he had so humanly (inhumanely?) failed to render throughout the entire story -- respect for those he was trying to selfishly destroy. If you've ever watched just one lonely individual (Mel Gibson in this case) do only what he/she could do (grab a couple mud bags) to make a difference against overwhelming odds, then to be joined in the task by those who were too paralyzed to even think, you'll find similar and inspiring action here, yourself caught up in the grittiness it all takes, and you'll almost rise from your seat to help patch the breached water wall with them.

One man prevailed, an entire valley's worth of beaten-down folk rallied, and what machinery couldn't absolutely guarantee, slogging feet and wet, muddy hands secured.

You just have to love it.

Mel Gibson and Sissy Spacek, are a young Farming family who battles not just the river of the title but also other matters such as the bank threatening to repossess their farm, and Scott Glenn plays a scrupulous land developer who plans to buy the farm to make way for a dam. together the family battles through the hard times in a desperate battle to hold on to their farm. Directed by Mark Rydell who directed such other fine American films 'The Reivers' 'The Rose' 'Harry & Walter go to New York' 'On Golden Pond' 'The River' is still a relevant if not hard to watch film in these downtrodden times. It also represents Mel Gibson at a time he was making quality fare. As usual Vilmos Zsigmond contributes terrific photography.

One of those Mel Gibson movies that no one has heard of and yet, is excellent. Sissy Spacek coming off of an Academy Award for Coal Miner's Daughter (1980) is excellent here too (nominated for this one as well).

It's always a tough go for farmers, but the 80's was particularly bad. Remember Farm Aid, 1985?

Scott Glen plays a good bad guy looking to push some farmers off their land. Mel and Sissy show that love is the tie that binds and resist giving up. Great cast and performances all around.

The River is really one of those lost gems from the 80's. The two main actors, Spacek and Gibson, show why their careers really took off during this time.