Review of How Green Was My Valley (1941) by Sergio O — 12 May 2014

Famous as the film that won many Academy Awards over Citizen Kane, considered to be the greatest film of all time, How Green Was My Valley had to be seen by me so that I could decide which was the superior film.

How Green Was My Valley is a clear example of a very dated film. It is a lot more relevant in its time than today and maintains the slow pace and older movie themes which aren't as present today in cinema. And it has a very classical style and feel to it, for better or for worse. I'm sure that people who really appreciate old cinema are likely to truly enjoy How Green Was My Valley, but modern viewers aren't likely to feel the same effect.

How Green Was My Valley deals with old subject matter and it goes about doing it over the course of a long film which feels a lot longer than it actually is. It isn't assisted by the fact that the pace of the film is also very slow and takes a long time to do little. I know that's the norm for films of the time, but in comparison to the superior films that were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, I would say that How Green Was My Valley is certainly not the most deserving.

Also, How Green Was My Valley is more interesting when it focuses on the bigger picture of its story and the way that the lowering in wages for coal miners affects the town as a whole instead of simply a small group of people. I know that films need to have central characters, but How Green Was My Valley presents a somewhat large scale theme which it fails to capitalise on and instead attempts to keep its focus on the smaller picture. And when the film attempts to dramatise the issues that are happening, the musical score of the film feels a little too lighthearted to really capitalise on the drama that it attempts to deal with. How Green Was My Valley could have been made better by enhanced dramatisation of events through a more hard hitting musical score to match the gritty look of the setting and the grey scale of the film. All in all, it isn't as atmospheric as it should be and its lighthearted musical score and focus on a child's journey through it all fails to really capitalise on the harsh reality of the story. All in all, John Ford is able to capture the dramatic scale of the big picture in How Green Was My Valley at times, but the film is largely dedicated to its characters who themselves aren't all too interesting. Frankly, John Ford's Academy Award winning treatment of How Green Was My Valley isn't as great as it is cracked up to be, and while he gives the film his all, it is a bit too maudlin for its own good. Since John Ford is known for creating firm, dramatic and gritty material on films such as The Searchers or The Grapes of Wrath, How Green Was My Valley doesn't capture his best talents in terms of storytelling.

But it does capture John Ford's keen eye for imagery because How Green Was My Valley is a great visual experience. The setting of the film is very convincing since the scenery has its natural appeal, and the production design of the film is great too. How Green Was My Valley brings its story to life well enough to make it seem thoroughly convincing, and its scenery is beautiful. And thanks to some Academy Award winning cinematography, the scale of everything is captured very well. So although the story isn't the finest or the most entertaining as well as being slow and long, How Green Was My Valley at least makes itself feel true to the real world events and stays to the roots of the novel well enough with a strong script.

Although How Green Was My Valley isn't the finest form of entertainment, it does capture the true dramatic nature of everything that is happening as it affects a family and begins to damage the innocence of the young Huw Morgan as he gets dragged into it all. As a family friendly film, How Green Was My Valley is fairly well composed and captures the innocence of a child as it becomes degraded more and more by the unfair politics in his small town. And it is well acted enough to encourage the character focused aspect of the film.

The standout actor in How Green Was My Valley is Roddy McDowall because he has to carry the entire film on his small 10 year old shoulders as the main character of the film. His line delivery is great and despite his young age he faces the material very maturely and doesn't degrade it with childish sentiment. How Green Was My Valley is notable for being the film which proved very early on precisely how talented actor Roddy McDowall was.

Donald Crisp also gives a fine supporting performance in How Green Was My Valley, one which won him the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He captures the dramatic nature of the story as his character comes into direct impact with the drama as Gwilym Morgan, the father of the main character and one of the biggest victims of the events that How Green Was My Valley covers. Donald Crisp gives a fine performance in How Green Was My Valley.

Sara Allgood also gives a fine effort in How Green Was My Valley where she interacts with all the other cast members well.

So although How Green Was My Valley is a dated film and is not superior to many films it beat for the 1941 Academy Award for Best Picture, as a tale about how unfair labour laws affected people during the depression, How Green Was My Valley is well directed and visually terrific, as well as very well acted.