Le fleuve sauvage

There is little to add to the eloquent appreciations of Wild River by other users. Still, I want to pay my tribute. My father took me to see the film when I was a little girl and it made such an impression on me I have been searching for it for years. Odd, since I remembered nothing of the plot, retaining only fleeting images of autumn colours, Lee Remick's autumnal hair, the old ferry, an indelible impression of Montgomery Clift's face, the old woman surrounded by still 'figures in a landscape'. And the creation of a unique atmosphere so tangible, so lyrical, so elegiac it stayed with me for 40+ years. I've been wanting to know why it clung to me so. And wondering why it seemed to have disappeared without trace. This Christmas, in the fullness of time, my niece presented me with the DVD and I have at last seen it again. Why did it affect me so profoundly? That one's easy. Why had the film disappeared. That one's complex, as you know. What I hadn't expected was that stunning performance from the incomparable Jo Van Fleet. No Oscar? Were they mad? It is intensely interesting and sobering to reflect how politics can hold art hostage.

Lee Remick's own favorite among her movies, and fine late Elia Kazan, this historic romance of the TVA and progress vs. tradition is beautifully crafted, gorgeous to look at, exquisitely acted, and quite frightening in its depiction of potential mob violence. Cleverly adapted from two books by Paul Osborn, it takes its time spinning out a gripping tale of a government agent (a restrained Montgomery Clift, his private life a wreck, but none of it shows on screen) trying to evict a stubborn, proud old woman (Jo Van Fleet, magnificent; Shirley Jones won over this? Really?) from her island so it can be flooded and power brought to all those poor Tennesseeans. He enlists the aid of her widowed-mom granddaughter, Remick, and the relationship between her and Clift is wonderfully ambiguous and rich. It's intelligent, moving, and convincing, and nobody went to see it in 1960. Very worth seeking out.

It's unfortunate that this wonderful film was ignored by the press and public when it was first released, and that this initial indifference has led to it's being so obscure today. As of yet, it is unavailable on DVD or VHS.

One of Elia Kazan's first film assignments was a documentary about the Tennessee Valley Authority in the 1930's. Incorporating some of the footage from that film, he returned to the subject in 1960 with "Wild River", a film which explores the gray areas of life as richly as any I can think of.

Following the catastrophic floods of 1932, the TVA is determined to build a dam to regulate the flow of the river. The dam can not be operated, however, until the 80 year old Ella Garth (Jo Van Fleet) can be persuaded to leave her home on Garth Island. The situation seems clear and simple to TVA representative Chuck Glover (Montgomery Clift), but it is not long before he must accept that what he sees as progress others see as the destruction of their natural way of life.

The urban intellectual Glover is sensitive enough to be moved by Mrs. Garth's plight but practical enough not to back down, even as he begins an affair with her granddaughter (Lee Remick). This relationship eschews all cinematic cliches, with Remick clearly the aggressor as the two seem pulled together by forces beyond their control. Kazan has criticized Clift's performance, terming him "not masculine" enough (he was gay in real life), but his chemistry with Remick is quite palpable even if it is unorthodox. She is nothing less than luminous, and he responds with the finest and healthiest performance of his later years. Van Fleet is magnificent. Incredibly, she and Clift were the same age at the time of filming.

Kazan's direction is masterful throughout, and he is abetted by his many collaborators. Ellsworth Fredericks's cinematography subtly suggests the inevitable changes of nature, and the mournful sound of Kenyon Hopkins's score on the soundtrack seems to echo the thoughts of the river itself. Paul Osborn's screenplay and the naturalistic work of the supporting cast (virtually a given with Kazan) sustain the documentary-like tone throughout the film, which seems to grow richer with subsequent viewings.

Let's hope the film will become available on video soon, allowing us to take advantage of those subsequent viewings.

This is a most remarkable film, chronicling a piece of Americana and presenting a compelling image of the tragedy of progress. And it is Jo Van Fleet whose utterly convincing and captivating portrayal of an 80-year old hillbilly woman (she herself was 45 years old) makes WILD RIVER a masterpiece. To reiterate what others have stated, the fact that her performance was not even nominated for an Oscar is an outrage! I tend to disagree with other reviewers in regards to the subplot between Monty Clift and Lee Remick; I feel their scene slow things down and I find myself fast-forwarding past them to get to the match of will between Clift and Van Fleet. I do, however, understand the necessity of the Chuck/Carol love affair - here you have a stubborn old woman who simply refuses to leave her lifelong home and a sensuous young woman who simply begs to get out! And Monty Clift becomes nemesis and savior. But their scenes together are a total yawn when the good stuff involves the reason Clift is there to begin with - not just his cat-and-mouse with Van Fleet, but all the other obstacles he faces from the rest of the populace of the rural south in the 1930's.

Still, an incredible film and worth viewing over and over again.

I had to say this movie was so stunning for me. The beginning black and white newsreel of a man who lost his three children in a flood is actually a real clip and it is my grandfather, so I was so amazed to see this. He passed away in 1972. My father lost his brothers and sisters in the flood which was in the 1930s Trumansburg, NY. I believe is was the flood of 1935. How amazing to see an actual news reel of my grandfather!!! I had a hard time finding the movie until I come across it on ebay. My father once had it, but he ended up losing it as the movie was not marked it was a blank VHS and it was unfortunately thrown away. I am holding onto the movie that I got until his birthday. It will make a unforgivable gift.