Giant (1956)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

George Stevens

Writers:

Edna Ferber (novel)
Fred Guiol (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

24 November 1956 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance | Western

Tagline:

From the novel by EDNA FERBER

Plot:

Sprawling epic covering the life of a Texas cattle rancher and his family and associates.

Plot Keywords:

Texan | Epic | Rancher | Texas | Cattle

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 4 wins & 12 nominations

Cast

Elizabeth Taylor	...	Leslie Benedict
Rock Hudson	...	Jordan 'Bick' Benedict Jr.
James Dean	...	Jett Rink
Carroll Baker	...	Luz Benedict II
Jane Withers	...	Vashti Snythe
Chill Wills	...	Uncle Bawley
Mercedes McCambridge	...	Luz Benedict
Dennis Hopper	...	Jordan Benedict III
Sal Mineo	...	Angel Obregón II
Rod Taylor	...	Sir David Karfrey (as Rodney Taylor)
Judith Evelyn	...	Mrs. Nancy Lynnton
Earl Holliman	...	'Bob' Dace
Robert Nichols	...	Mort 'Pinky' Snythe
Paul Fix	...	Dr. Horace Lynnton
Alexander Scourby	...	Old Polo

Runtime:

201 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Colour:

Colour (Warnercolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Certification:

Iceland:L | Spain:T | Australia:G (TV rating) | Australia:PG (DVD rating) | West Germany:12 (f) | South Korea:12 | USA:Approved (PCA #17675) (original rating) | USA:G (re-rating) (1970) | Argentina:Atp | Canada:PG | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | Portugal:M/12

Filming Locations:

Arizona, USA

Company:

Giant Productions

Trivia:

The film has been homaged in several other movies, notably Robert Altman's Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean (1982) and Kevin Reynolds' Fandango (1985), which features a group of students making a pilgrimage to Marfa to see what remains of the ranch house set.

Goofs:

Boom mic visible: Shortly after Leslie prepares breakfast for the first time in the ranch, surprising Luz, and as Bick walks down the stairs, a microphone is briefly visible above the shot.

Quotes:

Leslie Benedict: Money isn't everything, Jett.
Jett Rink: Not when you've got it.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Segni particolari: bellissimo (1983)

Soundtrack:

There's Never Been Anyone Else but You

Liz was cheated!

It's my opinion that Elizabeth Taylor should have at least been nominated for Best Actress. Her aging performance was nothing short of remarkable - especially considering that she was only 25 at the time. Indeed, her older character was even more credible than her youthful one.

On the other hand, I feel James Dean's performance was greatly over-rated.

Now, I don't say that Miss Taylor should necessarily have won that year. Deborah Kerr and Kate Hepburn each turned in very special performances and certainly Ingrid Bergman's win with "Anastasia" was understandable, but to have not even nominated Miss Taylor in her role as Leslie Benedict is simply incomprehensible to me.

It makes me think that perhaps we ought to have an award system that applies only after a picture has been released for 10 years. On the 10th anniversary of a film's release, let the IMDb members vote on all the major award categories (film, actor, actress, supporting, director) and then see how things rate. ;)