Giant

I'm not sure just how much of this film was meant as social critique but either way it really embodies an attitude still pervasive in the U.S. today. It may be overlong and melodramatic, but the characters are complex enough to be compelling. Greed and hypocritical attitudes abound in the film as do misapplied patriotism and racism, and while nothing is explored in depth the contrast with the grand lifestyle and glossy self assurance speaks volumes.

Good only for James Dean. Same as in all of his appearances, he makes his co-stars look retarded.

Giant, perhaps ironically, attempts to be too big. A condensed storyline with a stronger focus on the evolution of the three primary characters would have made this a much stronger film. Still, the acting is great all around, and there are a number of good scenes to be found.

Cows. Everywhere.

A story of a state told with epic photography and a great cast. James Dean gives an award winning performance. He proves that he can play more than just James Dean and we get a glimpse of what greatness might had been. The film might be a bit on the politically correct side from time to time, but it doesn't slap you in your face with it all that much. Rock Hudson is the one man in the world who can carry a cowboy hat with dignity.

A soap opera about old money giving way to oil money, as a family slowly learns lessons about racism and the equality of the sexes, interspersed with several generations of births, deaths and marriages, along with a little drunkenness and an occasional bout of good ol' fashioned fisticuffs, Texas style. Not only is the film very long, but each individual scene seems to be dragged out to an inordinate length for unclear reasons. Almost worth it for the Pedro scene. Also, wait for the cat.

A bit too epic. I enjoyed it a decent amount as I watched, but I'd probably never do so again. I'll give it credit for being able to fairly successfully pull off such ridiculous melodrama. And the cast turns in good performances; it's especially odd to see Dean in his final role as an aging, broken man..."the last supper," indeed.

So.....slow..... 90 minutes of movie stretched out to 180 minutes. The acting (except for Hudson) and scenery are worthy of a view, as are the revelations on how Texas did and still does treat non-whites....and non-males. NOTE: Much of the "trivia" in IMDb for this title is incorrect.

Almost four hours long and as wide as a yawn, Stevens's version of Ferber's Texas epic is excessive in every way. By the finish, gray has dusted the black-shoe-polish hair of Hudson, a limp empire-builder, and his little boy has grown up to be Hopper. Too much of the movie trudges along under the assumption that the gradual pileup of events, time, characters, and color will outweigh the vacuity of each individual moment.

First and foremost, a commentary on all things American: racism, patriarchy, classism, greed, waste, (...), exploitation and the ignorance and hypocrisy that holds them all together. The characters and the performances though (Dean and Hudson both are doing their best work here) make this highly enjoyable and a joy to watch from start to finish despite it's lengthy runtime.

A well crafted Texan epic.

1-2

A genuine intergenerational epic, which is a combination (thematically at least) of 'Citizen Kane' and 'The Magnificent Ambersons' and an obvious influence on Terrence Malick in his making of 'Badlands' and 'Days of Heaven'. The message about racial equity comes across as a bit forced, but the story about 'making it good in this world' while trying to retain familial loyalties is convincingly developed as the film unfolds. Hopper, Dean and Taylor are particularly impressive in their roles.

I know it is a grand sweeping epic, still seems too long. Found myself checking the time on more than one occasion.

In truth, for about the first one hundred minutes, "Giant" never rises above your average old-school western-tinged melodrama. But during the final hundred minutes, it becomes a masterfully lyrical elegy of gigantic sentimental proportions (pun intended).

A fine story and brilliant acting. The giant length of the movie was too much. Better focus and shorter scenes would do a lot for entirety. Are we getting too old?

Excelente descrição da possível evolução de uma geração e da ganância agregada a existência humana.

Good point: this is a classic. Bad point: everything about the film tells you it knows its a classic. Another bad point: What James Dean gives us here is not really a performance at all, but an impersonation.

Overly drawn out and often loses touch in all its grandness. There are some terrific scenes but they're unfortunately located in a desert.

I thought I'd make my 30th Hopper a GIANT with brains, and boy, them brains sure are sweet!

OK yeah yeah yeah James Dean's last film blah blah blah. It's not bad but this is another "epic" featuring a lot of bloat and hot air. Another self-important movie from George Stevens

Textbook definition of epic... Longer than 3 hours and I wasnt bored a single moment... George Lucas could make it a trilogy:)

I only watched this film for James Dean, and I suspect that's the same with everyone. A poor choice of music, tedious length and and passable acting by all whose names don't end in "Dean" ensure this film doesn't rank too highly. But characters are redeemed by the end of it, and the costume department deserves great kudos. A must watch, but only for JD (who's on screen for less than 1/6 of the whole movie)

Star Rating: ★★1/2

A classic sprawling epic that feels dated and bloated. At 3 hours and 10 minutes long it takes way too long to tell its story and I couldn't help but get the impression that it was simply trying to be BIG. Acting by Rock Hudson and Liz Taylor doesn't help, as their acting is dated and screams "Look at me act." Despite all that, the movie's message has good intentions, and it is well made despite its editing problems. I also really liked James Dean's performance.

88.500

The Mexican-American sub-plot was the only redeeming aspect of the film. Scratch that, the acting and the superstars were great too. The only problem was that I couldn't find a single character I liked and the story was a bit of an epic bore.

Heavy, detailed, and complex. The acting ability to convincingly portray characters over their entire lives remains the highlight of the film. This is probably the only real epic to explore 'Americana'. Very good, but be prepared to use those brain cells to tie up loose ends.

james dean is horrible in this. hudson and taylor, on the other hand, are great. the pacing is tolerable, even being over 3 hours long (and not needing). the editing and sound are a mess.

pure shit. maybe if I watched it 50 years ago, it would have been ok. But now a kid with a phone can make a movie with better... everything! s.h.i.t.

It's like a David Lean movie without the oomph

The film is quite good, if not a bit overlong. More than worth seeing for James Dean's Oscar-worthy performance. Undeniably his best.

"For a reason I cannot fathom, Giant still has a reputation as a fine film, and it will no doubt go on boring audiences forever and a day." - Dan Callahan

Great film.

89.750

okay movie

Some lengthy movies lend themselves to being watched in parts, especially if there's an intermission or passage of time. This is long, yes, but I don't know that there's much fluff or filler. The characters are wonderfully rich and the story is never dull. I found it surprisingly idealistic and progressive for the time.

While I can't deny GIANT's faults--the occasional heavy-handedness, the uneven pacing--less can I deny its virtues. George Stevens won a well-deserved Oscar for his thoughtful, yet bold direction; sadly, it won no other awards, despite the superb cinematography (making particularly striking use of shadows and obstructions to create an almost mythic atmosphere), the performances (Hudson, Dean, and Taylor are all strong), and the script, which tackles racism and progress alike with earnest power.

The least interesting of the three movies featuring James Dean, but very watchable still.

The only "giant" is my yawning.

Like a lot of sprawling epics this feels like a greatest hits album. The best parts are near the beginning when the story isn't as spaced out. It's well performed and the story (although straightforward) is engrossing.

This movie has a bit of a bad reputation in some circles as an overlong boring mess. Overlong? Yeah, probably, but I didn't find it boring, and I only occasionally was aware of how long it was. I thought all three primary characters (played by Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, and Jimmy Dean, in his final film role before his untimely death) were interesting. I found the dynamics between the characters very interesting. It probably could have been 40 or 50 minutes shorter, but it's very well made.

James Dean is magnificent in this. Everything else comes up small.

Fine, epic which entertains, looks nice and is really ahead of it's time in terms of discussing race and gender. It doesn't really have much of a hook or a plot and feels strangely like a small movie for something which has this title, spans 25 years and is more than 3 hours long. It's a good one but maybe not a great one.

Long time since I saw this. Would not be very surprised if I've over-scored it, since all I remember from this is James Dean's performance [incredible, obvs.].

Having trouble remembering what happend

It just didn't have that spark. Shame, my Kumpels seem to love it. Pretty bookends.