Whose heart wouldn't break? Not just for Mammy, but Rhett, also. Especially when Melanie knocks on the door of the nursery and Rhett says, "Get away from that door and leave us alone!". Melanie says, "It's Mrs. Wilkes, Captain Butler. Please let me in, I've come to see Bonnie." Rhett opens the door just a bit, and you can see Bonnie laid out on the bed, surrounded by blazing candles. Somewhat eerie, especially when a grief-stricken father wouldn't even let Mammy or Scarlett in the room.
MediaLover194 Totally agree! She did such a magnificent job of being "the solid rock" throughout the film, which makes her tears and sorrow here even more powerful. An incredible performance
@@BFEllison Superb acting scene. Through sheer narration and emotional description, Hattie was able to describe the morose and melancholic atmosphere of the Butler mansion. Through her broken heart you could feel Rhett's suffering and anguish for his lost child and his deteriorated relationship with Scarlett. With precisioned timing the story begins exactly at the foot of the stairs and ends at exactly the top.
@@interestedparty7523 Yes, the rule is "don't tell me, show me" yet here the opposite works. Word is Clark Gable did not want to be seen on screen crying so this is what the writers came up with as a solution.
Hattie is brilliant in this scene. This is the scene that earned her the Oscar, and well done too. As supporting actress, there was no other performance that year that even came close to this one scene she delivered.
In the book, Mammy confesses to Rhett that she was the one who made Bonnie afraid of the dark. She didn't mean any harm. She was just trying to stop Bonnie from running around the house in the dark where she could get hurt. And Rhett forgave Mammy.
Dang. Mammy is a pragmatic character. Got that job done. A kid can outgrow a fear of the dark but they won't grow at all if they fall down the stairs. I mean, in theory, considering the little twerp died anyhow.
True ! But sadly, right afterwards his anger's back when she "dares" to ask him again about the funeral. "I thought you would understand" (not the exacts words, forgive me).
Hattie McDaniel acted out her lines here in such a realistic, heart wrenching way contrasting a lot of “wooden acting” around at that time. She was ahead of her time really. I liked her character so much: practical, high morals, comical and also sensitive.
Rhett and Scarlett would have their final confrontation over their lives, Perhaps They're just Too Different, Scarlett would have love Ashley more if Rhett never ask her to marry him.
We haven’t really seen Mammy fall apart before this. She is strong and always stands up to Scarlett’s bs. But what’s really touching is, while she is crushed to lose Bonnie, her real grief is for Rhett. “I never seen no man, black or white, set such store by any child.” She’s falling apart for Rhett more than anything else and there are very few people in the film who ever care about what Rhett is dealing with (except for Belle, obviously).
She was like the moral center of the story! I know people of that time and this one criticize her for playing a slave but she kind of stole every scene she was in.
She always said she'd rather play a maid with dignity than to be a maid. And all the stars were at her house for Sunday lunch. She cooked up a huge home cooking meal and they were all there. Clark Gable the first in line for Hattie's cooking.
And what was she supposed to play? A revolutionary activist? ... She was acting a proper character of the XIX century. I am so sick of PC people pretending to impose their preconceptions and prejudices of what an historical character should be.
No matter how many times I see this, I'm in awe of Miss Hattie McDaniel's acting. This one scene is real acting and so heartbreaking. Hattie McDaniel was a true actress. If any of y'all get the chance of seeing a presentation of Gone With The Wind at the movies, go see it. It's a whole other experience on the big screen. In my opinion it's the greatest American motion picture ever made.
Uh, you really wonder why people think this movie is racist just because an AA actor won an Oscar? That doesn't mean anything. Believe it or not, a movie can still be racist no matter who wins an award.
I'm not trying to give an excuse. I'm just saying that it is historically accurate in its racism. It is what it is. If people don't like it, or take offense to it, then they don't have to watch it.
Mammie doesn't die in the novel but it's implied that she's old and tired and will not live much longer. Remember in the novel where she persuades Rhett to give her money to return to Tara? It's a sad scene and foreboding. At the very end of the novel Scarlett wants to go home to Mammy but poor Mammy might or might not be there.
She got it for this scene alone. There never was any supporting actress part so sure to win the Oscar as de Havillands performance as Melanie, but the emotional breakout of Miss McDaniel was the absolute showstealer and the deserved win
If Melanie didn't come, Rhett and Scarlett would have a final confrontation over their lives, if Scarlett love Ashley if Rhett never ask her to marry him, perhaps Rhett and Scarlett are Too Different.
It’s so heart wrenching to see Rhett being so affected by Bonnie’s death. He is so unserious and nonchalant in almost every scene so this gives his character an incredible amount of depth
It was this scene that earned Hattie Mcdaniel an Oscar. At times it may seem like she's underrated today, but true fans of this movie and any other that she's been in knows just how good she is.
I do. This scene is just heartbreaking, and Hattie McDaniel's acting is...brilliant. Just brilliant. She richly deserved that Oscar. Anybody who is not touched by this scene has no soul. Little Bonnie falls off her pony, and breaks her neck. And poor Mammy describing to Melanie how Scarlett & Rhett have been at each other's throats, instead of comforting each other, since their daughter died, and Rhett's mental breakdown. Who wouldn't be touched?
I dunno whether she meant she didn't want to hear any more about what they were calling each other, or whether Mammy just couldn't hold it back so Melanie gave up and let her vent. She certainly didn't look happy that she was expected to fix this.
@@irisgutfeld9681 I don't think so, because he wouldn't have loved another baby the way he loved Bonnie. Scarlett actually says to him at the end that they can have other children, and he says "thank you, but no. I'll not risk my heart a second time."
Hattie McDaniel wasn't acting...she was coming from somewhere even deeper. She was living that moment. She broke off in a couple spots that made it so incredibly real, like she was speaking from her own heart and not a script. Just heartwrenching and brilliant.
As one watches Melanie, the way she looks and carries herself, one can tell that she's at the end of herself, worn out. Olivia de Haviland in this scene doesn't say many words but she communicates much by facial expression and body language. Perhaps it could be said Miss de Haviland is reacting as much as acting. Too the lacy scarf or shawl she wears gives a sense of fragility. Hattie McDaniel: what an actress and what a performance. Too, as mentioned in another comment here, this scene with Mammy and Melanie gives the viewer so much information and context. Both actresses here did themselves proud.
I was always focused on the Brilliant Hattie McDaniel when I've watched this in the past. But today, for some reason, I watched Olivia de Haviland. Also Brilliant. Not just for her compassion called for in this scene, but the foreshadowing of Melanie's, soon to be end. It takes Melanie every ounce of strength that she has to get up those stairs. Two Remarkable Actors at the Top of Their Game.
Hattie McDaniel's acting is 30 years ahead of the rest of the cast in terms of realism. Everyone else is stuck in that stilted 1930s style of delivery except her.
Leigh got better over time, but I too am not very impressed with her in this. Gable was good, but he was playing a part he had played in one form of another countless times before. McDaniel totally rocks, from the second she shows up you can tell she's a force to be reckoned with.
Hattie McDaniel is brilliant in this movie and this scene in particular. But I must defend the rest of the cast's performance. To my eye, there is nothing 30's about their acting. It was subdued, intense, true to character, unaffected and convincing beyond words. I know what you're saying about 30's movie acting and I have to say in my humble opinion, the acting in this legend of a movie was far superior to any 30's acting I've ever seen.
@@Handiman544 Right! There are a few moments of affectation on the part of Vivien, but given the artifitiality that the character Scarlett used herself in her interaction with others, it still fits the personality of the character. Clark was absolutely perfect - but, of course, his part was far less complex than Vivien's. Hattie was a force of nature.
I truly believe what Mammy says is more effective that it would be if we’d seen it. Probably because it spares us the rage that we would have seen between Scarlett and Rhett and allows the sorrow to take center stage.
I've watched this scene a hundred times, but it's still heartbreaking. Amazingly, even though Melanie died so young, the actress who played her is still alive today!
I came to watch this after hearing of Olivia De Havilland's passing but it was Hattie McDaniels performance here that moved me to tears. "...put that child in the dark when she's so scared of it" hit me hard
Melanie was a good hearted woman who cared for others, especially towards scarlett who secretly hated her. She ignored the rumours about Scarlett and Ashley. Was overwhelmed with sadness by her death. 😭
I don't think that Scarlett hated her: she resented her because Melanie was married to Ashley whom Scarlett thought that she loved. Scarlett may have thought that she hated Melanie. Scarlett's emotions were very confused.
Melanie stayed for the nephew they took him out on the movie that why she stayed to be closer to her brother probably took the son out it didn't look right for Scarlett to be a single mother when the movie came out
Can’t helped but feel De Havilland herself was affected by McDaniel’s performance. This one scene always stood out for me and I wondered if there was a dry eye in the theater.
When I finally saw this film from beginning to end, I thought "This is the scene that won Hattie McDaniel the Oscar." Her lines are actually all exposition and yet, she infuses them with such a profound emotional life. Just heartbreaking.
Melanie knew that she had to play along with Rhett's delusion. Pretending that she had "come to see Bonnie", speaking of the child as if she was still alive, was the key that got Rhett to open the door. Melanie was such an angel in the flesh.
The most heartbreaking few minutes!! Mammy is just inconsolable and gentle Melanie, full of so much empathy and compassion... she's the only one who can reach Rhett in his grief and madness.
Rhett and Melanie are a rare example of a completely platonic relationship between a straight man and a straight woman in literature and film. There is never any sexual tension between them, but always absolute respect and tender platonic love and support. One of the most underrated moments at the very end is when Scarlett reveals to Rhett that Melanie’s last words were about him, and Rhett asks “what did she say?” in a genuinely stunned and pleading tone; by then he’s stopped caring about most things in his life, but he never stops caring for Melanie like a sister.
So many in my community see Hattie in her costume and dismiss her extraordinary work here; the first major Hollywood work that prominently featured an African American character that wasn’t a cheap stereotype but a living, breathing, intelligent human being. Hattie earned that Oscar and her place as a pioneer of POC in film.
Mammy had more control over the family than the other way around! A very wise woman, who could see nonsense and call it out for what it was! Hattie McDaniel's acting was 24k gold, just wonderful. She deserved that Oscar, and then some.
Are you crazy? The Mammy figure in itself is a stereotype, never questioning her white overseers, having no life of her own. Are you white by any chance?
@@DeepScreenAnalysis that's the reality of the Mammy. in "Wind", though, she talks back and questions and even confronts her overseers in a way that never would've happened in real life without mortal consequence.
@@DeepScreenAnalysis justify what? Read my original post; I'm praising Hattie's acting and the fact that she was allowed to be something more than a dim-witted comic.
Oh mammy😢😢😢. Truly, I weep with you each and every time I see this clip. It is true, the death of the child has the unfortunate power of driving a wedge between parents. Even in cases of miscarriage the parents must find the strength to grow stronger together. Mammy's recitation of the first 48 hours strikes you to the core. Not worrying about herself, Mammy elicits the help of none other than Mrs. Melanie Wilkes in hope of talking since into.....Rhett? If he won't listen to Mammy, maybe he will listen to the sainted Mrs. Wilkes.
Mammy has always been my favorite character in Gone with the Wind. She's like a mother to Scarlett and always will be. I had to live under custody with my grandmother. She's a good woman who provides me with a roof over my head, food and water, clothes and shoes if I need a new pair. She wouldn't let anybody get hurt, even if she doesn't know you. Heck, I think at one point closer to the end of the movie she went to find Scarlett during the war
In an interview with Olivia DeHavilland, she admitted to be so distraught when Hattie McDaniel won the Oscar; not because of a racial issue, but because she lost. She politely gave McDaniel a handshake as a sign of courtesy, but when Irene Mayer (David O. Selznick's wife) saw that Olivia was about to cry, she pulled Olivia into the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel (where they held the Oscars at that time) and that's when Olivia bursts into tears. She later won two Oscars in her career. Both incredible actresses here but nothing beats Hattie's acting!
DeHavilland was young and immature, at the time, and Selznick's wife warned her not to ruin the win for Hattie McDaniel. Olivia would have many more chances to win an Oscar, but this would be the most important night of McDaniel's career, possibly her life.
Olivia needed to lose this one in order to become a better actor herself. Hattie's performance was transcendent - indisputably superior in this case to Olivia's efforts. Hattie showed how great it could be. Olivia hadn't risen to level yet. She must surely have learned a great lesson here.
Honestly, the award could have gone to either of them and it would have been the perfect choice. But unlike Hattie (unfairly so), Olivia had tons of options. This was Hattie's moment and her win was a monumental, important one.
I know. The mention of Rhett killing the pony has always sickened me about his character, to be honest. It's the only part of this magnificent scene that I've never liked.
The point of that was to break our hearts on all levels as we watch it in 3rd person. Rhett deeply cared for and loved his daughter and he was entirely heartbroken. At the same time, he'd introduced her into riding which is a risky sport. So naturally, he felt guilty that it tragically killed her. Sometimes, we are too guilty to bare all that guilt at once so Rhett did something like blaming the horse. But once the poor animal was dead, he could only blame himself. Also it shows how we lose a large part of our empathy and humanity in midst of our grief.
@@animangafan342 There was also his sense of guilt because he was the one who had let her try to jump a fence that was too high for her, out of misplaced pride in her riding abilities.
THIS is the scene that won Miss Hattie McDaniel the Best Supporting Actress award over her co-star, Olivia de Haviland, and rightly so!! Hattie McDaniel is spectacular in this heartbreaking scene.
❤This won Hattie her Oscar over Olivia's performance. The incredible camera shot following them up the stairs and the wonderful Max Steiner score make this the most heartbreaking scene 💔 in the movie.
I've watched this movie thousands of times, still ball during this scene, and am crying now! Ms. McDaniel's acting in this movie was wonderful! I could just feel the pain from her!
This scene won McDaniel the Oscar. As a white person, I am so sorry for how you were treated and all the unfair prejudice you experienced, Ms. McDaniel. You were a sublime, consummate talent, who deserved the highest respect and praise. But thank God the Academy had the sense to award you your well-deserved Oscar. You left us far too soon. RIP.
I think this is hilarious. It's really McDaniel's monolog (2:22 seconds). And yet both people are acting their butts off WITH each other. It's like watching a professional tennis player go through their paces with their training partner. Hattie McDaniels fires the first serve, Olivia de Havilland lightly taps back the set-up for the next volley, McDaniels runs back and slams the next round and so on. Just lovely.
I read the novel and Hattie McDaniel’s portrayal of Mammy is exact to the book. Brilliant actress with amazing delivery. It’s so funny how originally Mammy HATED Rhett, told Scarlett she was “marrying trash” and breaking her dead mother’s heart. In this, her final scene, we see how much she came to love him and how sorry she is for his suffering. “He ain’t never had to stand nothing he ain’t want to stand...”
Mammy: the moral compass of the story Melanie: the heart of the story I sobbed when I read that Olivia de Havilland died, the last of the Gone With the Wind actors, and one of the last of the greatest of Hollywood's Golden Age....
A lot has to do with the film stock and processing techniques of the time. It wasn't until the 1980s that they were able to develop a film that could photograph black skin tones as well as white. Also, they did a lot of low light photography experimenting in the film and not all of it was successful. I feel keeping her in shadow here is effective because it forces us to really listen to and hear the sorrow in her delivery. In a picture that ran 4 hours, these few minutes of Hattie are pure gold.
What a great scene for Hattie. Black actors rarely got a chance at a scene requiring real performing skill. Even tho it’s racial views are antiquated and undignified, it would be a disaster to ban this film and lose her performance. Throughout , she is the one who sees thru Scarletts crap and recognizes her for what she really is. Much wiser than the white characters
Rhett and Scarlett would have their final confrontation over their lives perhaps they're just Too Different, Scarlett would have love Ashley more if Rhett never ask her to marry him, Surely you can't Change the Past.
I’m now finishing the book and have just got to this part. A lot of tragedy happens in a very short period of time and it’s no wonder Scarlett and Rhett are in such a mess, so sad.
Hattie McDaniel played this character with such dignity that, my takeaway as a child was that Mammy was smarter than Scarlet. I had no idea that the actress was vilified for taking the role. I was horrified when I learned that black people find the movie insulting and racist.
Long before I saw this movie from start to finish, I saw this scene on TV and remember being so taken with Hattie McDaniel’s performance even as a kid. Someone told me it was Gone With the Wind and didn’t seen the rest of this film but it stayed with me until I saw it completely and it was just as as effective even when I was an adult.
I love Oliva De Haviland's character in Gone With Wind Melanie Hamlition and Scarlett O Hara both were strong women and Melanie was more the nice one and Scarlett was different and hard. I loved Vivan Leigh as Scarlett. One of my favorite movies ever.
That was the most heartbroken novel I've ever real! I remember sitting in my bed after I finished reading it feeling empty nd sad cz that was an unexpected end, nd lost another safe place for me😞😞
I saw this movie when I was 16 years old and until I saw this scene, I couldn't understand why they gave Ms. McDaniel an Oscar. When Mammy her blood turned cold a literally felt a chill. This is one of the best acted scenes in all of movie history. I think this scene and Jennifer Holliday singing "And I'am telling you, and Shirley McClain "give her the shot" are the best acted scenes by a woman.
Sounds like my classmates when I was in school. There were a few nice kids, but those were few and far between. Most of them were a$$holes who got their jollies watching other people suffer, even though it was a movie. Are your classmates middle school students? At that age, kids are the WORST. They don't give a $%$#@ about other people's feelings.
This is a great scene and that staircase is beyond beautiful! I always wanted to know how big it was? The woodwork on the banister was perfection. I always wanted that staircase!
Such sadness and loss throughout that entire picture. Truly depicts the hell war brings and when Aunt Pitty said it’s just like the end of the world, and it was the end of their world. This country is headed down the same road.
when he said: they are not putting my kid in the dark where she is so scared of it... that broke my heart
It brings a tear to my eyes everytime
W me too
Whose heart wouldn't break? Not just for Mammy, but Rhett, also. Especially when Melanie knocks on the door of the nursery and Rhett says, "Get away from that door and leave us alone!". Melanie says, "It's Mrs. Wilkes, Captain Butler. Please let me in, I've come to see Bonnie." Rhett opens the door just a bit, and you can see Bonnie laid out on the bed, surrounded by blazing candles. Somewhat eerie, especially when a grief-stricken father wouldn't even let Mammy or Scarlett in the room.
Tears in my eyes.
My favorite line of the movie after Rhett's last line.
I think this is the scene that secured Hattie McDaniel's Oscar. Her acting here is heartbreaking.
MediaLover194 Totally agree! She did such a magnificent job of being "the solid rock" throughout the film, which makes her tears and sorrow here even more powerful. An incredible performance
MediaLover194 I've always felt that from her work throughout the movie, this scene particularly, showed she deserved the win. She was brilliant here.
So REAL. Hattie McDaniels was the best actor in this film, indisputably.
Thumbs up!!!
@@BFEllison Superb acting scene. Through sheer narration and emotional description, Hattie was able to describe the morose and melancholic atmosphere of the Butler mansion. Through her broken heart you could feel Rhett's suffering and anguish for his lost child and his deteriorated relationship with Scarlett. With precisioned timing the story begins exactly at the foot of the stairs and ends at exactly the top.
This scene is absolutely brilliant, having Mammy tell all of this to Melanie is more powerful than if we saw the actual events.
She was a brilliant actress feeding lines that hold the whole script together while bringing a method acting proformamc is incredible
One of the rare times where not seeing the action is more powerful. 99% of the time, you don't do this. Brilliant decision.
@@interestedparty7523 Yes, the rule is "don't tell me, show me" yet here the opposite works. Word is Clark Gable did not want to be seen on screen crying so this is what the writers came up with as a solution.
@@dannycarrington1601 this scene was in the novel
Hattie is brilliant in this scene. This is the scene that earned her the Oscar, and well done too. As supporting actress, there was no other performance that year that even came close to this one scene she delivered.
In the book, Mammy confesses to Rhett that she was the one who made Bonnie afraid of the dark. She didn't mean any harm. She was just trying to stop Bonnie from running around the house in the dark where she could get hurt. And Rhett forgave Mammy.
Dang. Mammy is a pragmatic character. Got that job done. A kid can outgrow a fear of the dark but they won't grow at all if they fall down the stairs. I mean, in theory, considering the little twerp died anyhow.
Mammy loves the o'hara family so much, she might always banter with scarlet but they loves each other :'(
True ! But sadly, right afterwards his anger's back when she "dares" to ask him again about the funeral. "I thought you would understand" (not the exacts words, forgive me).
But if Rhett Does not love Scarlett, if He could have Banish her from the house.
There is NO ONE who hasn’t cried during that scene when I showed this movie to my friends and family. This is absolutely powerful
😢😢😢😢
Hattie McDaniel acted out her lines here in such a realistic, heart wrenching way contrasting a lot of “wooden acting” around at that time. She was ahead of her time really. I liked her character so much: practical, high morals, comical and also sensitive.
Rhett and Scarlett would have their final confrontation over their lives, Perhaps They're just Too Different, Scarlett would have love Ashley more if Rhett never ask her to marry him.
As a person of color, I don't feel like less because of her role. In fact I'm kinda proud of her.
who gives a f?
Gregory Winans she’s definitely one of the strongest and kindest characters.
You should be! Since she was the first African American to win an academy award, she has gone down in history! Her memory should be honored! ❤️
@@BJknowz troll alert
@@rogerwhite95 alert, troll
We haven’t really seen Mammy fall apart before this. She is strong and always stands up to Scarlett’s bs. But what’s really touching is, while she is crushed to lose Bonnie, her real grief is for Rhett. “I never seen no man, black or white, set such store by any child.” She’s falling apart for Rhett more than anything else and there are very few people in the film who ever care about what Rhett is dealing with (except for Belle, obviously).
What if Rhett and Scarlett have a final confrontation over their lives?
She was like the moral center of the story! I know people of that time and this one criticize her for playing a slave but she kind of stole every scene she was in.
She always said she'd rather play a maid with dignity than to be a maid. And all the stars were at her house for Sunday lunch. She cooked up a huge home cooking meal and they were all there. Clark Gable the first in line for Hattie's cooking.
@@tompecena8573 I think we would all rather play maids (with dignity, of course) than actually be maids/slaves
And what was she supposed to play? A revolutionary activist? ... She was acting a proper character of the XIX century. I am so sick of PC people pretending to impose their preconceptions and prejudices of what an historical character should be.
@@Mancada100 right. History is history. You can’t just pretend it didn’t happen.
Very well said. The character of Mammy was indeed the moral compass of the book and of the movie, so well played by Miss McDaniel.
No matter how many times I see this, I'm in awe of Miss Hattie McDaniel's acting. This one scene is real acting and so heartbreaking. Hattie McDaniel was a true actress. If any of y'all get the chance of seeing a presentation of Gone With The Wind at the movies, go see it. It's a whole other experience on the big screen. In my opinion it's the greatest American motion picture ever made.
Uh, you really wonder why people think this movie is racist just because an AA actor won an Oscar? That doesn't mean anything. Believe it or not, a movie can still be racist no matter who wins an award.
It's only racist because of the time period it was set in. That's how it was back then.
I'm not trying to give an excuse. I'm just saying that it is historically accurate in its racism. It is what it is. If people don't like it, or take offense to it, then they don't have to watch it.
I don't remember Mammie Dying. When was that?
Mammie doesn't die in the novel but it's implied that she's old and tired and will not live much longer. Remember in the novel where she persuades Rhett to give her money to return to Tara? It's a sad scene and foreboding. At the very end of the novel Scarlett wants to go home to Mammy but poor Mammy might or might not be there.
Hattie McDaniel deserved the Oscar for this scene alone.
She got it for this scene alone. There never was any supporting actress part so sure to win the Oscar as de Havillands performance as Melanie, but the emotional breakout of Miss McDaniel was the absolute showstealer and the deserved win
Without Olivia deHavilland (Melanie), Hattie McDaniel (Mammy) and Ona Munson (Belle Watling) the film would be far less incredible.
RIP Olivia De Havilland
No one could have been a better Melanie than her.
MizzKittyBichon, yes indeed 🕯
If Melanie didn't come, Rhett and Scarlett would have a final confrontation over their lives, if Scarlett love Ashley if Rhett never ask her to marry him, perhaps Rhett and Scarlett are Too Different.
It’s so heart wrenching to see Rhett being so affected by Bonnie’s death. He is so unserious and nonchalant in almost every scene so this gives his character an incredible amount of depth
If Rhett and Scarlett had their final confrontation over their lives perhaps Butlers and O'Haras are Too Different.
This is the scene that won Hattie mcdaniel an academy award for best supporting actress
Hattie Mcdaniel with Olivia de Haviland what a perfect scene! I am always touched to watch Miss Mcdaniel going on with that perfect acting! BRAVO
I love Hattie. So underrated.
It was this scene that earned Hattie Mcdaniel an Oscar. At times it may seem like she's underrated today, but true fans of this movie and any other that she's been in knows just how good she is.
Hattie McDaniel truly brought the house down in this scene. That is the ultimate example of an Oscar winning performance
Anyone else wanna hug mammy during this scene :(
I do. This scene is just heartbreaking, and Hattie McDaniel's acting is...brilliant. Just brilliant. She richly deserved that Oscar. Anybody who is not touched by this scene has no soul. Little Bonnie falls off her pony, and breaks her neck. And poor Mammy describing to Melanie how Scarlett & Rhett have been at each other's throats, instead of comforting each other, since their daughter died, and Rhett's mental breakdown. Who wouldn't be touched?
I sure did! She was my favorite character in the movie!
I do
Me.
“Stop, Mammy! Don’t tell me anymore
And then that night ....”
😂
I dunno whether she meant she didn't want to hear any more about what they were calling each other, or whether Mammy just couldn't hold it back so Melanie gave up and let her vent. She certainly didn't look happy that she was expected to fix this.
Wonder if they would have stayed married if Scarlett had the second baby with Rhett
😆
@@irisgutfeld9681 I don't think so, because he wouldn't have loved another baby the way he loved Bonnie. Scarlett actually says to him at the end that they can have other children, and he says "thank you, but no. I'll not risk my heart a second time."
It's a sad scene but it's funny too
Hattie McDaniel wasn't acting...she was coming from somewhere even deeper. She was living that moment. She broke off in a couple spots that made it so incredibly real, like she was speaking from her own heart and not a script. Just heartwrenching and brilliant.
As one watches Melanie, the way she looks and carries herself, one can tell that she's at the end of herself, worn out. Olivia de Haviland in this scene doesn't say many words but she communicates much by facial expression and body language. Perhaps it could be said Miss de Haviland is reacting as much as acting. Too the lacy scarf or shawl she wears gives a sense of fragility.
Hattie McDaniel: what an actress and what a performance. Too, as mentioned in another comment here, this scene with Mammy and Melanie gives the viewer so much information and context.
Both actresses here did themselves proud.
I was always focused on the Brilliant Hattie McDaniel when I've watched this in the past. But today, for some reason, I watched Olivia de Haviland. Also Brilliant. Not just for her compassion called for in this scene, but the foreshadowing of Melanie's, soon to be end. It takes Melanie every ounce of strength that she has to get up those stairs. Two Remarkable Actors at the Top of Their Game.
Two powerhouse performers right there. I loved how kind and loving both Mammy and Melanie were.
What if Rhett and Scarlett have a final confrontation over their lives?
Hattie McDaniel's acting is 30 years ahead of the rest of the cast in terms of realism. Everyone else is stuck in that stilted 1930s style of delivery except her.
Leigh got better over time, but I too am not very impressed with her in this. Gable was good, but he was playing a part he had played in one form of another countless times before. McDaniel totally rocks, from the second she shows up you can tell she's a force to be reckoned with.
Hattie McDaniel is brilliant in this movie and this scene in particular. But I must defend the rest of the cast's performance. To my eye, there is nothing 30's about their acting. It was subdued, intense, true to character, unaffected and convincing beyond words. I know what you're saying about 30's movie acting and I have to say in my humble opinion, the acting in this legend of a movie was far superior to any 30's acting I've ever seen.
I disagree that part fit her perfectly she really didnt t have to act much.
Citrohan Without Vivian the rest is meaningless . That’s why they saw 400 women for the part. She fit it perfectly.
@@Handiman544 Right! There are a few moments of affectation on the part of Vivien, but given the artifitiality that the character Scarlett used herself in her interaction with others, it still fits the personality of the character. Clark was absolutely perfect - but, of course, his part was far less complex than Vivien's. Hattie was a force of nature.
I truly believe what Mammy says is more effective that it would be if we’d seen it.
Probably because it spares us the rage that we would have seen between Scarlett and Rhett and allows the sorrow to take center stage.
This is one of the most intense (and brilliantly acted) scenes in Hollywood history!
Rest In Peace Dame Olivia de Havilland 1916 - 2020 😢😭😢😭
I've watched this scene a hundred times, but it's still heartbreaking. Amazingly, even though Melanie died so young, the actress who played her is still alive today!
Rest In Peace, dear Olivia de Havilland.
What´s amazing about that? Bonnie dies as a child in the movie and the actress lived till 2010
@@austriaco4132 it’s still amazing I’m both cases.
I came to watch this after hearing of Olivia De Havilland's passing but it was Hattie McDaniels performance here that moved me to tears. "...put that child in the dark when she's so scared of it" hit me hard
Melanie was a good hearted woman who cared for others, especially towards scarlett who secretly hated her. She ignored the rumours about Scarlett and Ashley. Was overwhelmed with sadness by her death. 😭
In the book scarlett had a son with Charles they took it out in the movie that why melanie stayed friends to be neat the nephew
I don't think that Scarlett hated her: she resented her because Melanie was married to Ashley whom Scarlett thought that she loved. Scarlett may have thought that she hated Melanie. Scarlett's emotions were very confused.
@@irisgutfeld9681 Why Melanie stayed friends? I have read the book numerous time and saw no indication that Melanie didn't truly love Scarlett.
Melanie stayed for the nephew they took him out on the movie that why she stayed to be closer to her brother probably took the son out it didn't look right for Scarlett to be a single mother when the movie came out
@@betteurbain7911 for her nephew to be closer to the brother took him out in the movie
Can’t helped but feel De Havilland herself was affected by McDaniel’s performance. This one scene always stood out for me and I wondered if there was a dry eye in the theater.
When I finally saw this film from beginning to end, I thought "This is the scene that won Hattie McDaniel the Oscar." Her lines are actually all exposition and yet, she infuses them with such a profound emotional life. Just heartbreaking.
wrong
@@Patricia-zt8ub Wrong that it’s exposition, wrong that it’s the scene, wrong that her performance is heartbreaking? I need more, Patricia.
I don't know how anyone can watch this scene without getting choked up.
I've seen that 200 times, and I'm still in tears right now watching it again. Masterful.
Melanie knew that she had to play along with Rhett's delusion. Pretending that she had "come to see Bonnie", speaking of the child as if she was still alive, was the key that got Rhett to open the door. Melanie was such an angel in the flesh.
The most heartbreaking few minutes!! Mammy is just inconsolable and gentle Melanie, full of so much empathy and compassion... she's the only one who can reach Rhett in his grief and madness.
What if Rhett and Scarlett have a final confrontation over their lives?
Rhett and Melanie are a rare example of a completely platonic relationship between a straight man and a straight woman in literature and film. There is never any sexual tension between them, but always absolute respect and tender platonic love and support. One of the most underrated moments at the very end is when Scarlett reveals to Rhett that Melanie’s last words were about him, and Rhett asks “what did she say?” in a genuinely stunned and pleading tone; by then he’s stopped caring about most things in his life, but he never stops caring for Melanie like a sister.
Just the way she says, "Please, Miss Melly" ... breaks my heart
This is what guaranteed Hattie the Oscar! There was no doubt.
Melanie is a true friend.
So many in my community see Hattie in her costume and dismiss her extraordinary work here; the first major Hollywood work that prominently featured an African American character that wasn’t a cheap stereotype but a living, breathing, intelligent human being. Hattie earned that Oscar and her place as a pioneer of POC in film.
Mammy had more control over the family than the other way around! A very wise woman, who could see nonsense and call it out for what it was! Hattie McDaniel's acting was 24k gold, just wonderful. She deserved that Oscar, and then some.
Are you crazy? The Mammy figure in itself is a stereotype, never questioning her white overseers, having no life of her own. Are you white by any chance?
@@DeepScreenAnalysis that's the reality of the Mammy. in "Wind", though, she talks back and questions and even confronts her overseers in a way that never would've happened in real life without mortal consequence.
@@lonellfletcher she still remains their slave, owned by them. Stop trying to justify it.
@@DeepScreenAnalysis justify what? Read my original post; I'm praising Hattie's acting and the fact that she was allowed to be something more than a dim-witted comic.
This scene breaks my heart. Poor Mammy.
both hattie and olivia are amazing here. this scene gets me every time i watch it.
....Melanie goes on ahead to knock on the nursery door and Mammy kneels, praying out loud for Rhett, in his hour of need
Oh mammy😢😢😢. Truly, I weep with you each and every time I see this clip. It is true, the death of the child has the unfortunate power of driving a wedge between parents. Even in cases of miscarriage the parents must find the strength to grow stronger together. Mammy's recitation of the first 48 hours strikes you to the core. Not worrying about herself, Mammy elicits the help of none other than Mrs. Melanie Wilkes in hope of talking since into.....Rhett? If he won't listen to Mammy, maybe he will listen to the sainted Mrs. Wilkes.
Mammy has always been my favorite character in Gone with the Wind. She's like a mother to Scarlett and always will be. I had to live under custody with my grandmother. She's a good woman who provides me with a roof over my head, food and water, clothes and shoes if I need a new pair. She wouldn't let anybody get hurt, even if she doesn't know you. Heck, I think at one point closer to the end of the movie she went to find Scarlett during the war
Bonnie's death always make me sad.
me too 😕
hattie gave me goose bumps and SHE won an Oscar for this in 1939!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Her acting broke right through the stereotype. This monologue was very believable.
In an interview with Olivia DeHavilland, she admitted to be so distraught when Hattie McDaniel won the Oscar; not because of a racial issue, but because she lost. She politely gave McDaniel a handshake as a sign of courtesy, but when Irene Mayer (David O. Selznick's wife) saw that Olivia was about to cry, she pulled Olivia into the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel (where they held the Oscars at that time) and that's when Olivia bursts into tears. She later won two Oscars in her career. Both incredible actresses here but nothing beats Hattie's acting!
DeHavilland was young and immature, at the time, and Selznick's wife warned her not to ruin the win for Hattie McDaniel. Olivia would have many more chances to win an Oscar, but this would be the most important night of McDaniel's career, possibly her life.
Thank you, thatoneguy and Miss Lisa for the history lesson. Unforgettable.
Olivia needed to lose this one in order to become a better actor herself. Hattie's performance was transcendent - indisputably superior in this case to Olivia's efforts. Hattie showed how great it could be. Olivia hadn't risen to level yet. She must surely have learned a great lesson here.
Honestly, the award could have gone to either of them and it would have been the perfect choice. But unlike Hattie (unfairly so), Olivia had tons of options. This was Hattie's moment and her win was a monumental, important one.
Yes a lot of people thought Olivia should have won. But it’s good for pictures that Hattie did.
The poor pony
I know. The mention of Rhett killing the pony has always sickened me about his character, to be honest. It's the only part of this magnificent scene that I've never liked.
Oh! When she told that to Melanie, it was just sickening to me. The least he would’ve done is give it away to somebody else or let it run away free.
The point of that was to break our hearts on all levels as we watch it in 3rd person. Rhett deeply cared for and loved his daughter and he was entirely heartbroken. At the same time, he'd introduced her into riding which is a risky sport. So naturally, he felt guilty that it tragically killed her. Sometimes, we are too guilty to bare all that guilt at once so Rhett did something like blaming the horse. But once the poor animal was dead, he could only blame himself. Also it shows how we lose a large part of our empathy and humanity in midst of our grief.
@@animangafan342 There was also his sense of guilt because he was the one who had let her try to jump a fence that was too high for her, out of misplaced pride in her riding abilities.
He was beside himself with grief over losing his daughter and he blamed the pony for killing her. I get it.
THIS is the scene that won Miss Hattie McDaniel the Best Supporting Actress award over her co-star, Olivia de Haviland, and rightly so!! Hattie McDaniel is spectacular in this heartbreaking scene.
No matter how many times I have seen GWTW this scene always breaks my heart.
Ms. McDaniel earned her Oscar with this scene.
Hattie McDaniel = legend
❤This won Hattie her Oscar over Olivia's performance. The incredible camera shot following them up the stairs and the wonderful Max Steiner score make this the most heartbreaking scene 💔 in the movie.
"Mammy, Mammy he has lost his mind" Tears.
I've watched this movie thousands of times, still ball during this scene, and am crying now! Ms. McDaniel's acting in this movie was wonderful! I could just feel the pain from her!
This scene won McDaniel the Oscar. As a white person, I am so sorry for how you were treated and all the unfair prejudice you experienced, Ms. McDaniel. You were a sublime, consummate talent, who deserved the highest respect and praise. But thank God the Academy had the sense to award you your well-deserved Oscar. You left us far too soon. RIP.
I think this is hilarious. It's really McDaniel's monolog (2:22 seconds). And yet both people are acting their butts off WITH each other. It's like watching a professional tennis player go through their paces with their training partner. Hattie McDaniels fires the first serve, Olivia de Havilland lightly taps back the set-up for the next volley, McDaniels runs back and slams the next round and so on. Just lovely.
RIP Olivia de Havilland. She passed away only yesterday (7/25/2020).
If you notice, the first theme of Max Steiner's incredible score (after the Selznick Fanfare and "Dixie" is that he composed for Mammy.
I believe this scene earned Hattie mc Daniel her Oscar.
I read the novel and Hattie McDaniel’s portrayal of Mammy is exact to the book. Brilliant actress with amazing delivery. It’s so funny how originally Mammy HATED Rhett, told Scarlett she was “marrying trash” and breaking her dead mother’s heart. In this, her final scene, we see how much she came to love him and how sorry she is for his suffering. “He ain’t never had to stand nothing he ain’t want to stand...”
She forgave him after Bonnie was born. It brought them together. I think that's when he gave her the red petticoat?
@@betteurbain7911 he brought it as a gift returning from his honeymoon, because his own Mammy always dreamed of a red taffetta Petticoat
Hattie McDaniel should have received 10 Oscars for this scene alone! Brilliant acting!
Can you believe that Melanie is turning 100 years old??
Casey J Now she's 101 years old and still healthy!
She was the first of the principal characters to die in the film, and yet she outlived the other actors by many decades.
Now 103!
@@gilliscolgan4356 about to be 104 💖
She just died today 😔Perusing the classic scenes.
Mammy: the moral compass of the story
Melanie: the heart of the story
I sobbed when I read that Olivia de Havilland died, the last of the Gone With the Wind actors, and one of the last of the greatest of Hollywood's Golden Age....
Olivia was given better lighting, but this scene very obviously belongs to Hattie.
A lot has to do with the film stock and processing techniques of the time. It wasn't until the 1980s that they were able to develop a film that could photograph black skin tones as well as white. Also, they did a lot of low light photography experimenting in the film and not all of it was successful. I feel keeping her in shadow here is effective because it forces us to really listen to and hear the sorrow in her delivery. In a picture that ran 4 hours, these few minutes of Hattie are pure gold.
Cukor directed it. Of the three, only he was capable of getting that kind of performance from an actor.
I ALWAYS cry when I see this.
Me too...
Hattie McDaniel performance blew everyone else out of the water here.
She was amazing, the way she told all the sad events, it made them look so real. GREAT ACTRESS!
What a great scene for Hattie. Black actors rarely got a chance at a scene requiring real performing skill. Even tho it’s racial views are antiquated and undignified, it would be a disaster to ban this film and lose her performance. Throughout , she is the one who sees thru Scarletts crap and recognizes her for what she really is. Much wiser than the white characters
My belief is this cinched Hattie's Oscar. I see others agree.
Greatest acting in the history of cinema. You will never see anything like this again. It's supernatural.
Rhett and Scarlett would have their final confrontation over their lives perhaps they're just Too Different, Scarlett would have love Ashley more if Rhett never ask her to marry him, Surely you can't Change the Past.
The fact that the actress playing Melanie is still alive and well in 2020 amazes me 😮
Not any more :(
@@HattiesVlogs Still, what a run! I'd begun to think all the older film actors bought it in the 80s but Olivia was tough!
@@BeeWhistler Unlike Melanie.....
I’m now finishing the book and have just got to this part. A lot of tragedy happens in a very short period of time and it’s no wonder Scarlett and Rhett are in such a mess, so sad.
The death of Bonnie was pretty much the only time I felt legitimate pity for Scarlet.
I still get chills watching this scene. So terribly sad.
Hattie McDaniel played this character with such dignity that, my takeaway as a child was that Mammy was smarter than Scarlet. I had no idea that the actress was vilified for taking the role. I was horrified when I learned that black people find the movie insulting and racist.
The movie is very racist. Her performance is still outstanding.
Movies like these were unmatched Globally in old Hollywood. Nowadays, only smutt, negatively and hate ... Hollywood has lost its mind...IMHO
Long before I saw this movie from start to finish, I saw this scene on TV and remember being so taken with Hattie McDaniel’s performance even as a kid. Someone told me it was Gone With the Wind and didn’t seen the rest of this film but it stayed with me until I saw it completely and it was just as as effective even when I was an adult.
Rip Olivia de hallivand ❤️
other than Sophie's Choice, i have never sat through something this painful. Every time i say I will not cry at GWTW I cry on this scene like a baby.
I love Oliva De Haviland's character in Gone With Wind Melanie Hamlition and Scarlett O Hara both were strong women and Melanie was more the nice one and Scarlett was different and hard. I loved Vivan Leigh as Scarlett. One of my favorite movies ever.
Rest In Peace Olivia De Havilland.
They both deserved the supporting role award ; it must have been a difficult decision to make.
One take, with Hattie doing emotional exposition, which isn't the easiest thing to do.
That was the most heartbroken novel I've ever real! I remember sitting in my bed after I finished reading it feeling empty nd sad cz that was an unexpected end, nd lost another safe place for me😞😞
This is one of my favorite scenes. Hattie McDaniel is just so believable.
I saw this movie when I was 16 years old and until I saw this scene, I couldn't understand why they gave Ms. McDaniel an Oscar. When Mammy her blood turned cold a literally felt a chill. This is one of the best acted scenes in all of movie history. I think this scene and Jennifer Holliday singing "And I'am telling you, and Shirley McClain "give her the shot" are the best acted scenes by a woman.
The two best performances in the entire film. Olivia de Havilland and Hattie McDaniel owned the movie.
Damn great scene! I love the set and especially love that staircase! I have never seen staircase to rival it! My favorite film
Her prayer right after this, too.
To this day I'm still ill on my classmates. Half the class laughed when Bonnie fell off the pony. It was awful. The didn't care a child just died.
Wow. Maybe they felt embarrassed to show sorrow in front of each other.
damn they suck.
@@betteurbain7911 we called them out and they said it's just a stupid movie.
Sounds like my classmates when I was in school. There were a few nice kids, but those were few and far between. Most of them were a$$holes who got their jollies watching other people suffer, even though it was a movie. Are your classmates middle school students? At that age, kids are the WORST. They don't give a $%$#@ about other people's feelings.
This is a great scene and that staircase is beyond beautiful! I always wanted to know how big it was? The woodwork on the banister was perfection. I always wanted that staircase!
I never even noticed it.
I agree with you openbook! Two wonderful actors!
Today Olivia is the last surving member of the main cast, will be 102 in July, by God's grace
about to be 104 now 💖
She gone
I love Mammy the most
This is the classiest acting in the whole movie. These two were the best.
I would’ve loved if Scarlett and Rhett grew closer together as the result of Bonnies death but instead they grew further apart...
Such sadness and loss throughout that entire picture. Truly depicts the hell war brings and when Aunt Pitty said it’s just like the end of the world, and it was the end of their world. This country is headed down the same road.
this is why she won the oscar
I cry everytime I see this scene.
Thanks for uploading it
Superb acting!!