Giant

1956. Dir: George Stevens. Starring: Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, James Dean, Carroll Baker and Jane Withers. ●●○○○



Giant is the sort of sprawling epic that they just don't make any more. Only they do make them like this, except they make it cheaper with less well known stars and put it on television 3 times a week. That's right; if it looks like soap, sounds like soap and feels like soap it must be soap.



The action opens in Dr. Lynnton's northern estate where Jordan Benedict (Hudson) is buying a horse. The horse is a favourite of Lynnton's daughter Leslie (Taylor) and it soon becomes clear that Benedict won't be returning to Texas alone. Once the action shifts to the Raela ranch we are introduced to Bendict's sister Luz (Mercedes McCambridge) and employee Jett Rink (Dean).

Characters come, go and die, inherit, get rich, have children (who grow up marry and have their own children), and pretty soon 3 hours of your life have gone.

The film isn't short of good ingredients, though.

It's themes of gender and racial equality are important to make but Dennis Hopper's leaden speeches aren't enough and the promise of Taylor leading female emancipation in the partriachical Texas society is never exploited. Liz Taylor is luminous (even if her wardrobe is unflattering). McCambridge gives a pitch perfect performance, although this too is wasted because every tiem she speaks the camera cuts to an extreme close up or she appears somewhere way off centre.

The best elements of the film come and go quickly - James Dean striking oil (bizarrely cut with a party at Reala), McCambridge riding the new stallion in silhouette, the interior of Reala until the Benedict's start striking oil.

The bad points are much more prevalent: In the later stages of the film Dean and Hudson stop acting and let their make-up do all the work as their characters age and the script lurches from one melodramtic speech to another. Generally the entire production seems ham fisted and amateurish.

Bizarrely this film was nominated for 10 oscars, winning one for George Stevens' direction, and is regularly voted as one of the best films of all time. I can only hope they have been wacthing another film.