History Literature / HowGreenWasMyValley

The film was a great financial success and later won five [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]], including one of the most famous examples of the AwardSnub backlash: Winning Best Picture in 1942, which doesn't seem that much of a surpirse, since it was well-received at its time, and still maintains a good reputation among film buffs. The problem? Also up for Best Picture in 1942 was a little picture by a [[Creator/OrsonWelles novice director]] called ''Film/CitizenKane'', widely regarded as one of, if not the, greatest films ever made; and another little ditty named ''Film/{{The Maltese Falcon|1941}}''. As a result, ''Valley'' is best known today as "[[AwardSnub that movie that won Best Picture over]] ''Film/CitizenKane''". In 1990, it was selected for inclusion in the UsefulNotes/NationalFilmRegistry of the Library of Congress.

The film was a great financial success and later won five [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]], including one of the most famous examples of the AwardSnub backlash: Winning Best Picture in 1942, which doesn't seem that much of a surpirse, since it was well-received at its time, and still maintains a good reputation among film buffs. The problem? Also up for Best Picture in 1942 was a little picture by a [[Creator/OrsonWelles novice director]] called ''Film/CitizenKane'', widely regarded as one of, if not the, greatest films ever made; and another little ditty named ''Film/TheMalteseFalcon''. As a result, ''Valley'' is best known today as "[[AwardSnub that movie that won Best Picture over]] ''Film/CitizenKane''". In 1990, it was selected for inclusion in the UsefulNotes/NationalFilmRegistry of the Library of Congress.

* ReasonYouSuckSpeech: Mr. Gruffydd's last sermon to his congregation, who are driving him out due to groundless rumors. He strongly criticizes them for hypocritically calling down God's vengeance, while forgetting God's love. Sadly, it seems like his words don't take.

''How Green Was My Valley'' is a 1939 novel by Richard Llewellyn, which was adapted into a 1941 Creator/TwentiethCenturyFox film directed by Creator/JohnFord and starring Walter Pidgeon, Donald Crisp, Creator/MaureenOHara, and Creator/RoddyMcDowall, with a score by Creator/AlfredNewman. It tells the story of Huw Morgan, the youngest son of a mining family in the Welsh village of Cwm Rhondda. Through his eyes, we see such events as his brother Ivor's wedding, the consequences of his sister Angharad's chaste romance with preacher Mr. Gruffydd (as well as her loveless and failed marriage into the mine owner's family), and a miner's strike in his town.

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/how_green_was_my_valley.jpg]]

* AsTheGoodBookSays: Angarhad uses Jesus' words to the sinful women when she protests the elders' condemnation of an unwed mother: "Go now and sin no more."

* MamaBear: Beth Morgan. When striking miners threaten Gwillym for his opposition to the strike, she crashes a strikers' meeting and threatens to kill anyone who harms her husband, with her bare hands. And it's very clear she's not bluffing.

* SceneryPorn: It *is* a John Ford movie, after all. And the film did win the Oscar for Best Cinematography (Black and White).
* ServileSnarker: The Evans’ housekeeper, who doesn’t even try to conceal her contempt for her employers.

* YourCheatingHeart: Averted. Despite her unhappy marriage to Mr. Evans's son - Angharad keeps her distance away from her real love Mr. Gruffyd. This doesn't stop Mrs. Nicholas from spreading malicious rumors about a divorce however.

''How Green Was My Valley'' is a 1939 novel by Richard Llewellyn, which was adapted into a 1941 Creator/TwentiethCenturyFox film directed by Creator/JohnFord and starring Walter Pidgeon, Donald Crisp, Creator/MaureenOHara, and Creator/RoddyMcDowell, with a score by Creator/AlfredNewman. It tells the story of Huw Morgan, the youngest son of a mining family in the Welsh village of Cwm Rhondda. Through his eyes, we see such events as his brother Ivor's wedding, the consequences of his sister Angharad's chaste romance with preacher Mr. Gruffydd (as well as her loveless and failed marriage into the mine owner's family), and a miner's strike in his town.

''How Green Was My Valley'' is a 1939 novel by Richard Llewellyn, which was adapted into a 1941 Creator/TwentiethCenturyFox film directed by Creator/JohnFord and starring Walter Pidgeon, Donald Crisp, Creator/MaureenOHara, and Roddy [=McDowell=], with a score by Creator/AlfredNewman. It tells the story of Huw Morgan, the youngest son of a mining family in the Welsh village of Cwm Rhondda. Through his eyes, we see such events as his brother Ivor's wedding, the consequences of his sister Angharad's chaste romance with preacher Mr. Gruffydd (as well as her loveless and failed marriage into the mine owner's family), and a miner's strike in his town.

* CaliforniaDoubling: The film was originally intended to be made in the UK, but UsefulNotes/WorldWarII made that idea all but impossible. So, it was filmed on the 20th Century Fox backlot. According to movie lore, the move to California meant that the movie would have to be filmed in black and white, rather than color as originally intended, because the colors of the flowers and other vegetation in California would not match the colors in Wales.

The film was a great financial success and later won five [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]], including one of the most famous examples of the AwardSnub backlash: While it was well-received at its time, and still maintains a good reputation among film buffs, it won Best Picture of 1941. The problem? Also up for Best Picture in 1942 was a little picture by a [[Creator/OrsonWelles novice director]] called ''Film/CitizenKane'', widely regarded as one of, if not the, greatest films ever made; and another little ditty named ''Film/TheMalteseFalcon''. As a result, ''Valley'' is best known today as "[[AwardSnub that movie that won Best Picture over]] ''Film/CitizenKane''". In 1990, it was selected for inclusion in the UsefulNotes/NationalFilmRegistry of the Library of Congress.

** Beating out ''[[RunningGag Citizen Kane]]''.

* CaliforniaDoubling: The film was originally intended to be made in the UK, but WorldWarII made that idea all but impossible. So, it was filmed on the 20th Century Fox backlot. According to movie lore, the move to California meant that the movie would have to be filmed in black and white, rather than color as originally intended, because the colors of the flowers and other vegetation in California would not match the colors in Wales.

[[quoteright:216:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/HowGreenWasMyValley_635.jpg]]

->Memory... Strange that the mind will forget so much of what only this moment has passed, and yet hold clear and bright the memory of what happened years ago; of men and women long since dead.
-->'''Huw Morgan'''

->[[TitleDrop How green was my valley]] then, and the valley of them that have gone.
-->Last line of the novel.

A 1939 novel by Richard Llewellyn, ''How Green Was My Valley'' was adapted into a 1941 TwentiethCenturyFox film directed by Creator/JohnFord and starring Walter Pidgeon, Donald Crisp, Creator/MaureenOHara, and Roddy [=McDowell=], with a score by Creator/AlfredNewman. It tells the story of Huw Morgan, the youngest son of a mining family in the Welsh village of Cwm Rhondda. Through his eyes, we see such events as his brother Ivor's wedding, the consequences of his sister Angharad's chaste romance with preacher Mr. Gruffydd (as well as her loveless and failed marriage into the mine owner's family), and a miner's strike in his town.

The film was a great financial success and later won five [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]], including [[AwardSnub a now-controversial win as Best Picture of 1941]], over a little picture by a [[Creator/OrsonWelles novice director]] called ''Film/CitizenKane'', and another little ditty by name of ''Film/TheMalteseFalcon''. Some only talk about it as the film that shouldn't have won those Oscars, which is somewhat unfair, since it is an excellent movie in its own right. In 1990, it was selected for inclusion in the UsefulNotes/NationalFilmRegistry of the LibraryOfCongress.

* BookEnds: The scenes in the film both following mine accidents, where Gwillym cradles his son Ivor's dead body on the elevator, and where Huw similarly cradles his father's dead body on the same elevator.

* BittersweetEnding: And that's an understatement. One could make a case that it's actually a DownerEnding.
* BookEnds: The scenes in the film [[spoiler: both following mine accidents, where Gwillym cradles his son Ivor's dead body on the elevator, and where Huw similarly cradles his father's dead body on the same elevator.]]

* ComingOfAge

* DiedInYourArmsTonight: [[spoiler:when the rescuers bring up Huw's father on the shaft elevator.]] Maybe a PietaPlagiarism.

* GrowingUpSucks

* InnocenceLost: Huw's growing up includes half his family driven away for their pro-union activities, his sister marrying a man she doesn't love, being forced by circumstances to take a job with coal mine, his town elders driving away the good priest who mentored Huw, and [[spoiler:the death of his father in a mining accident.]] By the end of the movie and novel, his green valley is no more. [[BittersweetEnding All that remains are the memories of his loved ones]].

* ParentalAbandonment: [[spoiler: Mr. Morgan dies at the end in a mining explosion.]]
* PrecisionFStrike: Beth Morgan has a couple of 1941-style moments. First, she begins her ReasonYouSuckSpeech to the striking miners with, "I am Beth Morgan, as you damn well know!" Later, [[spoiler: after Ivor is killed just before his child's birth]] she questions God's will. When Gwillym warns her about incurring God's wrath, she answers, "To Hell with the wrath!"

* SliceOfLife
* TemptingFate: Gwillym declares that if the congregation goes ahead with their condemnation of Angharad and Mr. Gruffydd, he'd never set foot in the church again. They do, [[spoiler: and he doesn't. He's mortally injured in a mine explosion that night.]]

* CaliforniaDoubling: The film was originally intended to be made in the UK, but WorldWarII made that idea all but impossible. So, it was filmed on the 20th Century Fox backlot.
** According to movie lore, the move to California meant that the movie would have to be filmed in black and white, rather than color as originally intended, because the colors of the flowers and other vegetation in California would not match the colors in Wales.

* SadistTeacher: Mr. Jonas
** Then Dai Bando doles out some LaserGuidedKarma to him.

The film was a great financial success and later won five [[UsefulNotes/AcademyAward Oscars]], including [[AwardSnub a now-controversial win as Best Picture of 1941]], over a little picture by a [[Creator/OrsonWelles novice director]] called ''Film/CitizenKane'', and another little ditty by name of ''Film/TheMalteseFalcon''. Some only talk about it as the film that shouldn't have won those Oscars, which is somewhat unfair, since it is an excellent movie in its own right. In 1990, it was selected for inclusion in the NationalFilmRegistry of the LibraryOfCongress.

The film was a great financial success and later won five [[AcademyAward Oscars]], including [[AwardSnub a now-controversial win as Best Picture of 1941]], over a little picture by a [[Creator/OrsonWelles novice director]] called ''Film/CitizenKane'', and another little ditty by name of ''Film/TheMalteseFalcon''. Some only talk about it as the film that shouldn't have won those Oscars, which is somewhat unfair, since it is an excellent movie in its own right. In 1990, it was selected for inclusion in the NationalFilmRegistry of the LibraryOfCongress.

The film was a great financial success and later won five [[AcademyAward Oscars]], including [[AwardSnub a now-controversial win as Best Picture of 1941]], over a little picture by a [[OrsonWelles novice director]] called ''Film/CitizenKane'', and another little ditty by name of ''Film/TheMalteseFalcon''. Some only talk about it as the film that shouldn't have won those Oscars, which is somewhat unfair, since it is an excellent movie in its own right. In 1990, it was selected for inclusion in the NationalFilmRegistry of the LibraryOfCongress.

A 1939 novel by Richard Llewellyn, ''How Green Was My Valley'' was adapted into a 1941 [[TwentiethCenturyFox 20th Century Fox]] film directed by JohnFord and starring Walter Pidgeon, Donald Crisp, [[MaureenOHara Maureen O'Hara]], and Roddy [=McDowell=], with a score by AlfredNewman. It tells the story of Huw Morgan, the youngest son of a mining family in the Welsh village of Cwm Rhondda. Through his eyes, we see such events as his brother Ivor's wedding, the consequences of his sister Angharad's chaste romance with preacher Mr. Gruffydd (as well as her loveless and failed marriage into the mine owner's family), and a miner's strike in his town.

The film was a great financial success and later won five [[AcademyAward Oscars]], including [[AwardSnub a now-controversial win as Best Picture of 1941]], over a little picture by a [[OrsonWelles novice director]] called ''Film/CitizenKane'', and another little ditty by name of ''Film/TheMalteseFalcon''. In fact it now is probably best remembered as the film that shouldn't have won those Oscars, which is somewhat unfair, since it is an excellent movie in its own right. In 1990, it was selected for inclusion in the NationalFilmRegistry of the LibraryOfCongress.

* BookEnds: The scenes in the film [[spoiler: both following mine accidents, where Gwillym cradles his son Ivor's dead body on the elevator, and where Huw similiarly cradles his father's dead body on the same elevator.]]

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[[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment Did we mention that this movie beat Citizen Kane?]]

!!This film provides examples of: