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 enlarge | Director: Victor Fleming
Actors: Spencer Tracy, Hedy Lamarr, John Garfield, Frank Morgan, Akim Tamiroff
Studio: MGM (Warner)
Category: Video
List Price: $19.98
Buy Used: $11.39
You Save: $8.59 (43%)
New (4) Used (9) Collectible (2) from $11.39
Rating:  9 reviews
Sales Rank: 1915
Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), Spanish (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: VHS Tape
Number Of Items: 1
Running Time: 100 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 4.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 6302308542
UPC: 027616112637
EAN: 9786302308549
ASIN: 6302308542
Theatrical Release Date: 1942
Release Date: September 1, 1998
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Well-treated ex-rental in original uncut box
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-9 of 9
 Excellent early depiction of Chicano life January 2, 2004
J. Velasquez (Crystal Lake, IL United States)
2 out of 6 found this review helpful
Very interesting to see 1942 Hollywood's depiction of Chicano life.The neighborhoods looked realistic enough, like an earlier version of Mi Familia's barrio.
Spencer Tracy was excellent as Pilon. Unfortunately, a real lack of Latino actresses and actors at the time.
 An Outstanding Translation from Book Form October 30, 2000
M. Beltran (California United States)
15 out of 17 found this review helpful
It's true that it's nearly impossible to make John Steinbeck's stories into movies. I had the advantage of having read Tortilla Flat before seeing this movie version. In cinema you have the visual facet of storytelling. You cannot go verbatim into film. Some things get mis-translated. Those who had a hand in making this film knew exactly where to take it. That or it was plain old blind luck. I could tell they knew the story well. They knew how to retell it in movie form. That was their strength. Black and white is like alchemy for many nowadays, but back then it was already a refined art. For the whole movie i hadn't noticed that it was in black and white. You don't yearn for color when all the elements of lighting, composition, tonal range, everything, tricks your mind into perceiving color. All of the characters were engaging and alive. The story took me in, into Monterey. It's a story of people who have very little, but in their friendships are more well off than the very wealthy. If you watch this movie before you read the book, it is just as well. You won't miss much by not reading the book. The movie is that good.
 IT HAPPENED IN MONTEREY June 11, 2000
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
This simple Steinbeck story takes place in the Monterey, California of the early forties. A little slow and drawn-out, the story involves Tracy and Garfield and their paisano friends and their adventures. Garfield's inheritance of two houses bring him instant respectability yet estranges him from Tracy and his other pals. Both Tracy and Garfield vie for the affections of lovely Lamarr and become near-enemies in the process. An entertaining little picture which has Garfield unfortunately miscast as Danny (his Spanish accent was pretty unconvincing) and the part lacked the dynamism for which Garfield was famous for.
I read the book, too-- this is a movie! MGM's masterpiece September 25, 1999
Joseph L Kremer (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania USA)
12 out of 13 found this review helpful
I read the book also like the critic below me but this is a film and one of MGM's finest. It is a wonder to behold. Spencer Tracy's performance as the hapless Pilon is a highlite and John Garfield as Danny is a performance to treasure. Buying this movie off of Amazon was a refreshment. It has always been one of my favorite films and will always be. The comments below mine is from an old book-crone from a person who spends time looking at the negative points of the film and cannot sit back and enjoy a real classic. Victor Fleming's direction ("Gone With the Wind", "The Wizard of Oz") is truly fashioned in its true existential film about the life of the "paisanos" and Hedy Lammar's performance as "Sweets" Ramirez is her best. See this movie.
 This overly sentimental movie destroys Steinbeck's work. March 20, 1999
3 out of 8 found this review helpful
This movie is overly sentimental and completely destroys the content and meaning of Steinbeck's original novel. The most poignant parts of Steinbecks novels are altered in such a way to meet the demands of a Forties audience. The novel ends with Danny's death in a mythological assault on the gods. The movie ends with Danny's marrying Sweets Ramirez and living happily ever after. In the novel, the corporal's baby dies. There is a lesson in that chapter about proper child rearing. In the movie, Danny and Sweets adopt the baby and it too lives happily ever after. This is a story that's about due to be made into a movie that more closely follows the story and meaning of the book.
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