Event

Wild River

New 35mm Print
50th Anniversary
Sponsored by the Hazel Wolf Environmental Film Network
(Elia Kazan, USA, 1960, 35mm, 105 min)

Kazan's mid-career masterpiece introduced a newly ruminative tone and political subtlety to his work, with a tempered reconsideration of the New Deal notions of progress (to which his own early career was intimately tied). One of Kazan's personal favorites, Wild River pits a timid yet determined Tennessee Valley Authority official - portrayed by a fascinating Montgomery Clift - against a hamlet targeted for imminent flooding and a young resident - played by a radiant Lee Remick - smitten by his eccentric charm. The harnessing of nature takes on almost Biblical dimensions, thanks to the magnificent Cinemascope photography and the electrifying performance of Jo Van Fleet as the town matriarch, who alone understands the river's unspoken diluvian powers.

"The most complex and finely detailed love story in Kazan's work...fusion of long scenes with a broad vision that creates the directors achieved masterpiece." - Jonathan Rosenbaum

"Unjustly neglected, gorgeous! Lee Remick is Kazan's ace-in-the-hole. Finally given a role that calls for sexuality and chops, she delivers wildly on both fronts." - David Fear, Time Out New York