User Reviews

It's hard to even understand why TOBACCO ROAD was such a long-running success on the Broadway stage. Fox has taken the play, cut all of the more sizzling elements that made it intriguing, and reduced it to a tale of dirt poor farm folk too shiftless to make a living off the land with the accent on comedy rather than focusing on a few of the more poignant moments.

It's certainly a disappointment to find Dana Andrews and Gene Tierney totally wasted in small roles early in their careers at Fox. Tierney, especially, has little to do but say a few lines and look as unscrubbed as possible. It's really an embarrassment to watch her in this role.

Overacting is in abundance, particularly from William Tracy as the imbecilic son, Dude, who is crazy from start to finish (with Ward Bond delivering him a well-deserved punch at the finale). Marjorie Rambeau as a gospel-singing fanatic overacts too and even Ward Bond is irritating at times.

But in the central role of the shiftless farmer who spends the whole story trying to devise ways to save his land with a $100 down payment, Charlie Grapewin gives a fine, nuanced performance, slipping easily from comedy to drama without a strain. Elizabeth Patterson tries to give some dignity to the role of his equally downtrodden wife.

John Ford's uninspired direction is largely responsible for the lackluster overall impact of the film, based on the play taken from an earthy Erskine Caldwell novel. Whatever elements made the play so enormously successful have been eliminated in Nunnally Johnson's screenplay.

Summing up: A huge disappointment on many levels although it contains some striking B&W photography.

Tobacco Road as was written by Erskine Caldwell and dramatized on Broadway for 8 years was brought to the screen by 20th Century Fox in a considerably altered state. It was thought of probably by Darryl Zanuck as a great property for John Ford seeing what he did with The Grapes Of Wrath.

The Grapes Of Wrath by John Steinbeck is a great piece of social commentary, an immortal work whether in print or on the big or small screen. Ford kept the spirit of Steinbeck's work completely intact and got a well deserved Best Director Oscar. In this one because Caldwell's Jeeters are not quite as noble as the Joads of The Grapes Of Wrath, they're not prototype rural proletarians. The changes took a lot of the drama and commentary and left the film not too far above the Weaver Family films and Ma and Pa Kettle.

Charley Grapewin and Bessie Patterson are Mr.&Mrs. Jeeter Lester and Jeeter is a guy determined to get by doing as little as possible. The whole family has his spirit. He's married most of his children off. One of the daughters in serious trouble of being an old maid at 23 and that was Gene Tierney if you can believe that. Her character in the book and play has a cleft palate and you can understand why she's not married off. Here she's just gorgeous Gene Tierney and a crucial element is missing.

There's another daughter Pearl whom we never see, but who's married to the loutish Ward Bond. She keeps running off and Bond just doesn't get it. Here he's just rustic lout, I suspect that the 13 year old Pearl figures she can do a whole lot better. That one I'm sure the Code was breathing hot and heavy over 20th Century Fox.

There's another physically deformed character and that's Marjorie Rambeau who has in the book a nose like a pig's snout. Grapewin palms off his 16 year old son as a new husband for Rambeau to get his hands on the insurance money her old husband left her. William Tracy as the kid who's no prize figures she's experienced and eager even if she's a psalm singer which she is.

The rough house comedy that typifies many a Ford film is funny, but hardly in the spirit of what Caldwell was writing. In the end I have to say that the film is not good John Ford, though he's done worse.

After a bank purchases the land, a family of hillbillies faces eviction if it can't come up with the rent. Based on a Caldwell novel that in turn became a stage play, this is very broad comedy that rarely rises above the level of The Three Stooges. Grapewin plays a lazy farmer who has so many children that he and his wife can't keep track of them. Tracy is horribly over-the-top as one of the grown children living at home. Tierney is third billed as Tracy's useless sister but barely has a line of dialog. Rambeau does OK as a neighbor. Andrews plays the only character who has some dignity. Every once in a while Ford came up with a real clunker, and this is one of them.

John Ford directed this adaptation of a hit play about a family of dirt poor toothless Southern farmers. Charley Grapewin is great and carries the film on his shoulders. Elizabeth Patterson gives an enjoyable (and sometimes sensitive) turn as his wife. William Tracy plays a savage character who grates on the nerves but he does a good job at it. Ward Bond is funny as a neighbor married to one of their daughters. He has the movie's most crowd-pleasing scene when he puts Tracy in his place. Dana Andrews and Gene Tierney have small roles. I think Tierney spoke less than twenty words the whole film.

Any comparison between this film and Ford's classic from the year before, Grapes of Wrath, is absurd. Beyond the very superficial similarities, they are nothing alike. This doesn't have the gravitas or artistry of that film. The closest it comes is the scene when Grapewin and Patterson talk about two of their children who left home and never returned. The rest is a grotesque comedy about people that are almost cartoon characters more than humans.

Obviously not for the easily offended among us. This film peddles in just about every Southern stereotype you can think of. Having grown up in the South with relatives not too far removed from the types of characters displayed in this, I'm not really bothered by it. Stereotypes generally have some basis in truth, no matter how much we don't want to admit it. Amusing at times, moving once or twice, but not the masterpiece it wants to be. See it for Grapewin's energetic performance if nothing else.

Tobacco Road (1941)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

I take pride in watching bizarre movies from every country and every decade but I never figured that's what I'd be viewing when I sat down to watch this John Ford film that seems to have been forgotten over the years. The movie, based on the famous novel and long-running play, centers on Jeeter Lester (Charley Grapewin) and his family, poor Georgia farmers who are about to get kicked off their land unless they can round up $100 to stay for a year. That's pretty much all there is to know story wise, although the screenplay does take the film into different directions as the family is faced with the possibility of losing everything they love. If people got wide-eyed about the way Ford showed Indians then they're probably going to have their heads rolling off at this look at a redneck family. I was really, really caught off guard by how incredibly bizarre and strange this movie was. I think part of this is due to the comedy never working and for some strange reason this gives the film a rather bizarre atmosphere because you're watching this strange stuff yet nothing really laughing. The humor is rather strange because there's an older man (ward Bond) not wanting to marry an "old woman" of 23-years because he likes his 13-year-old current wife. We have humor about one of the Lester sons (William Tracy) who is so crazy and out of control that you can't help but think he's retarded and the film tries to get laughs off of this. We have the young Lester daughter (Gene Tierney) lusting after the older man with a lot of sexual innuendo. This redneck family is just so weird that you can't help but be slightly put off by them and the fact that the film is trying for laughs just makes some of it even stranger. The one major saving grace is the performance by Grapewin who really is marvelous here. His old-time redneck is spot on with the dialogue delivery and body movements that there's no doubt the character will ever leave your mind once you've seen it. Supporting players like Elizabeth Patterson and Dana Andrews come off pretty well but the same can't be said for Tierney who really looks bad here. She just isn't right for the role and she comes off looking like she's really struggling to do something with it. Ford's direction isn't all that bad but there's a reason this film isn't really that well-known or talked about when people discuss his work.

This movie is quite popular in certain circles but I guess I'm just not the biggest fan of John Ford's his straight-forward drama's.

Even though this movie is a comedy it still is a movie that is driven by its drama, characters and emotions. But problem is, I just wasn't very taken by any of its drama, characters or emotions. The entire movie and the way it plays out with its story, dialog and characters, feels very stagy. No wonder, since it also actually got based on a popular stage play by Jack Kirkland. But in my opinion a stage-play rarely translates well on to the silver-screen.

I can't really say that this is an horrible movie to watch, since it also made me laugh a couple of times and it does has its moments but overall the movie feels far too distant and stagy and besides starts to annoy after a while.

The movie features a family of hillbillies, who are all extreme stereotypes and do some beyond stupid and crazy things, that will just never happen in real life. It's also reason why the movie feels really distant and so do all of the characters and their emotions.

I could take Charley Grapewin's hillbilly performance for half an hour or so but after that I soon became tired of it. I have seen him before in several movies and it seems that he made his career out of playing this sort of clueless hillbilly characters. His performance and especially accent always sort of annoyed me but not bad enough to make me hate him, since he was also always playing more supporting type of roles, rather than the main character. In this movie however he is the main character, so no big surprise that I got annoyed by him pretty fast.

A John Ford you can really easily do without.

6/10

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I really and truly loved this movie.. so much so I have made VHS copies for my friends so they can see just how funny and comical this one is. hardly anyone I talked to has ever seen it and most have never heard of it either.. due to the fact that it is unavailable on DVD or VHS and hardly ever shown on TV makes it more exciting to watch. I really want to give it more than a 7 but I will stay with that because of the somewhat unpopularity by some movie critics of this movie. most movie critics wouldn't know a good movie if it hit them in the face. all in all it is a refreshing type of comedy that will keep you laughing for hours and hours. a movie that everyone should experience at least once.

When John Ford filmed "Tobacco Road" in 1941 the play was still running on Broadway. It opened in 1933 and even today only "Life with Father" has had a longer run for a non-musical production. It was based on Erskine Caldwell's risque novel about dirt-poor Southern farmers and after his success with "The Grapes of Wrath" Ford might have seemed like a fairly obvious choice for the film version but Caldwell was not Steinbeck and this was no "Grapes of Wrath".

It's tolerable enough but Charley Grapewin's old codger Jeeter, a supporting character now given centre screen, gets on your nerves very quickly. In fact, everyone in this picture gets on your nerves very quickly, (they are all portrayed as greedy imbeciles). William Tracy is terrible as the son and a youthful Gene Tierney, (it was only her second film), is totally miscast as sex-pot Ellie May. If Marjorie Rambeau is a little less grating as Sister Bessie it's perhaps because she, at least, is trying to underplay her part and only the great Elizabeth Patterson comes out of this with any dignity. In other words, it's certainly nobody's finest hour, (except perhaps cinematographer Arthur Miller), and Ford's least of all. The only real surprise about it is how it was ever a hit in the first place.

Director John Ford was certainly an odd duck; the stories he was attracted to ran the gamut from "The Searchers" to "The Quiet Man" to this one, a head-scratcher of a tragicomedy based on Erskine Caldwell's book and Jack Kirkland's popular stage-adaptation. Eccentric Georgia farm family is threatened with poverty when the bank forecloses on their land, leading patriarch Jeeter to use his wiles in hopes of raising $100 for a year's worth of rent. Movie swings wildly from hick-slapstick to poignant drama; however, once you've had a chance to get attuned to Ford's rhythm, it's a pretty terrific ride. Charley Grapewin gives an Oscar-caliber performance (he wasn't even nominated!), and it's fun to see Gene Tierney and Dana Andrews looking very youthful three years before "Laura". Good show! *** from ****

In the 1940 John Ford masterpiece "The Grapes of Wrath," Charley Grapewin played a Depression-era Okie patriarch who dies after being forcibly evicted from the land on which his Joad family had lived for generations. The following year, in Ford's "Tobacco Road," Grapewin enjoyed a much larger role, playing a somewhat similar character. Here, he played Jeeter Lester, the lazy, shiftless head of a "poor white trash" family in Depression-era rural Georgia that is about to be evicted from its ancestral abode. Based on Jack Kirkland's 1933 stage play (the longest-running Broadway show at the time, as the film's opening credits tell us), which was itself based on an Erskine Caldwell novel, "Tobacco Road" gives us a typical week in the life of the Lesters. We meet Jeeter and his put-upon wife Ada (Elizabeth Patterson), borderline retarded son Dude (William Tracy) and imbecilic daughter Ellie May (Gene Tierney, in her third film). Desperate for food, the poverty-stricken Jeeter steals a bag of turnips from his son-in-law Lov (Ward Bond), who is having major troubles with his 13-year-old wife but spurns the fawning attentions of 23-year-old Ellie May because she's just too durn old! Dude eventually marries a woman a good 20 years older than himself, a nearby evangelist named Sister Bessie (Marjorie Rambeau), only because she has promised to buy him a car with a horn to toot (Dude, for some reason, has a horn fixation!). This $800 automobile, however, gives our man Jeeter some big ideas on how he might raise the $100 he needs to save his land....

I must confess that on my initial viewing of this film, I was somewhat appalled at the cracker-barrel inanity of some of the proceedings. Played mainly for laughs, the picture struck me much more favorably on a repeat viewing. Grapewin is a marvel in his role of Jeeter, giving practically an Oscar-worthy performance, Ford's direction is typically sensitive and impeccable, and DOP Arthur C. Miller's lensing is just beautiful, never more so than in the scene where the Lesters walk to the poor farm amidst falling leaves. (Miller would deservedly win an Oscar for his work on that same year's "How Green Was My Valley.") Screenwriter Nunnally Johnson's script is very amusing, as well; he would go on, 13 years later, to write the script for the Gene Tierney film "Black Widow." And speaking of Gene (my main reason for renting this film in the first place), in her 1979 autobiography "Self-Portrait," she tells us that she "was sprayed each morning with a thin coat of oil--over my arms, legs, and face--after which dirt was rubbed on" to achieve her begrimed character's look in this film. She also mentions that she was so embarrassed by the idiot-seduction scenes with Bond that she had to ask Ford to clear the set when these were shot. Gene is wonderful as always here, but, sadly, only gets to utter six lines of dialogue, all told. "Tobacco Road" was her first film with Dana Andrews (playing a kindly, normal neighbor of the Lesters, who almost seems to be of a different species!), although they share no scenes together; the two would go on to appear in "Belle Starr," "Laura" (the classiest of film noirs), "The Iron Curtain" and "Where the Sidewalk Ends." The Lester family is referred to as "just naturally trifling" by a police chief during the course of this film, but the picture itself is hardly a trifling affair. Though certainly not the classic that is "The Grapes of Wrath," it is nevertheless an artful picture, featuring some wonderful performances and amusing moments, ultimately leaving us with a sense of sadness regarding these poor folk who are now "gone with the wind (hmm, where have I heard THAT line before?) and the dust...."

Really wanted to like 'Tobacco Road' so much more. The novel was a sensation at the time as was the Broadway play adaptation. John Ford was a fine director with many very good and more films in a variety of genres, not just Westerns (of which he is still widely regarded as one of the finest directors that specialised in the genre). He was my main reason for seeing the film, despite it not being one of his best received films. The cast also promised a lot.

'Tobacco Road' was one of those films for me that promised more than it delivered. It is not one of Ford's finest hours and much of the cast have done better work in other films. Adapting from stage to film has a good deal of traps and 'Tobacco Road' sadly falls into most of them. Is it a terrible film? Absolutely not. Did it disappoint? Yes it did sadly. As it was directed by Ford and had Charley Grapewin, Dana Andrews, Gene Tierney and Elizabeth Patterson in it, 'Tobacco Road' should have been much better than it was.

It has good things. The best thing about it is Grapewin, who has experience in his role from playing him on stage and it proved to be a good move as he is terrific here and gives the film the flashes of nuance it doesn't have enough of elsewhere. Patterson has a lovely dignified presence and Andrews makes much of little.

Some of the black and white photography is striking and pleasing to look at. There are moments of poignancy and at times the comedy is amusing, Grapewin being the most successful of the cast by far to balance comedy and drama without any signs of over-compensating.

Unfortunately, Tierney is completely wasted and really struggles to do much with the very little she was given (which was hardly anything). Actually found her very out of place. William Tracy overacts badly and is very annoying as a result. Few of the characters come over as real people and more like fairly crude stereotypes that are difficult to get behind or like. Ford's direction is not incompetent but by Ford standards his work comes over as rather pedestrian and like he was not really that inspired by the material. While the photography is fine the settings look very phony and cheap.

Also felt that the script struggled with the balance of comedy and drama. The drama comes over a little better as there were poignant moments, as well as some sentimental ones. The drama however is over-shadowed in number and execution by the comedy and the odd amusing moment aside the humour is mostly not very funny and is pretty corny. The story lacks energy and the action is not opened up enough, giving it a stage bound feel.

Bottom line, not terrible but lacklustre. 4/10

The back side of the same coin whose front is The Grapes of Wrath. It's a Depression piece about a family of Georgia dirt farmers who are about to be driven from their home. Here John Ford stays much in his comedy mode, so most of his detractors will certainly want to stay clear of it. And even I admit that at times it can be obnoxious. Dude Lester, the youngest of the 16 (or 17) children Jeeter and Ada Lester had, and one of only two who still live on the farm, is particularly hard to bear. One wonders whether Jeeter and Ada had the same parents. Dude runs around screeching and imitating his car's horn. He can be funny, but he's certainly the most grating element of the movie. Luckily, he gets his comeuppance, which makes it well worth putting up with him. The other child, a 23 year old girl, Ellie May (Gene Tierney, in a very early appearance and gorgeous as the earthy farmer's daughter – Ford really fetishizes her, to tell you the truth), is in love with her brother-in-law, Lov (Ward Bond, whom I didn't even recognize). He chose Ellie May's younger sister because he wanted a young wife – 23 is too old and he feared he'd be the laughing stock of Tobacco Road. Most of the movie focuses on Jeeter (Charley Grapewin), who is trying to remain on his land. It's quite amazing. These characters are so stereotypical, and they can certainly be construed as highly offensive. The Beverly Hillbillies probably contains less offensive material about hicks. With any other artist at the helm, it would be completely reprehensible. Yet, in Ford's hands, Jeeter Lester exhibits as much humanity as Tom Joad. We laugh at his ridiculousness, but we care for him very much. His wife (played by Marjorie Rambeau) doesn't get a lot of screen time, but when she does, she reminds me much of Jane Darwell's heartbreaking role as Ma Joad. After Dude tears into his parents about being at death's door, the two have a solemn conversation about their numerous, departed children. `I thought at least one of them would write,' Ada sighs. The film also boasts the greatest number of occurrences of Ford's favorite hymn, `Shall We Gather at the River'. It even serves as the base of the film's score. If the wackiness doesn't put the detractors off, that song very well might! I love it myself. As funny as Tobacco Road is, and it is quite funny almost all of the time, it contains dozens of moments of the greatest American poetry. 9/10.

John Ford's film adaptation of a hit stage play is an uneasy blend of humour and melancholy in which shiftless hillbilly patriarch Jeeter Lester (Charley Grapewin) tries to find the $100 he needs to prevent his disintegrating family from being evicted from their ramshackle homestead. The melancholic undertone eventually cuts through the relentless shouting but the broad characterisations fatally weaken its message.

The movie's essentially, a one-man showcase: Charlie Grapewin as the amiable n'er-do-well Jeeter Lester. He's a hoot and a half in his ragged overalls and bewhiskered face. Too bad the old coot just can't seem to get anything done, despite his uncomplaining, loyal wife (Patterson). Rarely did old Hollywood uglify settings as thoroughly as here. Lesters' shack looks like a wood pile, while others along the Road share that skid-row appearance. Trouble is that when you think about it, there's nothing funny about these miserable background conditions. Fortunately for the movie, Jeeter's comical antics distract from that troubling aspect. For example, I love the way the loose porch board keeps getting even with Jeeter's uncaring neglect in fixing it.

Yup, the Depression Era makes things especially tough for these Southern farmers, and the question the Lesters confront is whether they can get a loan before getting herded into the poor farm. Note too, how the sleek Captain Tim (Andrews) appears to represent a landlord class, while Jeeter is among his tenant farmers dependent on the upper class for support. At this point in the movie, however, all have fallen on hard times, though the Captain still looks spiffy and well-upholstered, unlike his tenants.

Nonetheless, the results are played for laughs, though I suspect many folks find the rural Southern caricatures more offensive than funny. For example, did they have to make young Dude Lester so dislikable-- that slug an angry Loy (Bond) puts on him was long overdue. Also, remind me not to loan my car to the Destruction Derby kid anytime, ever. Anyway, the movie is a sing-along for frog throats like me what with all those great old time gospel songs, even if choirmaster Sister Bessie (Rambeau) is caricatured. But please, get me a ticket to that old Road where I can maybe meet up with the luscious Ellie May (Tierney). I guess my biggest gripe is that Tierney doesn't get more screentime-- maybe all of it. On the other hand, I've definitely reached a new appreciation of the lowly turnip, of all things.

All in all, I suspect the TCF production does not wear well for many. Still and all, Grapewin delivers a rollicking performance, so give the 84-minutes a try if you haven't already.

While it would have been wonderful to see Henry Hull playing the lead role (since he originated it on Broadway), Charley Grapewin has no trouble filling the beloved character actor's shoes in Tobacco Road. He plays Jeeter, an illiterate hick in the swamps of Georgia. He and his wife, Elizabeth Patterson, live in abject poverty on the land handed down through the generations. They're barely functional, and it's actually depressing to watch them interact with their friends, family, and neighbors. Marjorie Rambeau plays the ever-preaching neighbor who seduces their underaged son, William Tracy. Gene Tierney, their daughter they keep trying to pawn off on everyone, is literally chained up in the backyard.

The crux of the story comes when city men visit the strip of Georgian land that is going to be repossessed. Grant Mitchell practically doesn't even speak the same language as Charley, and as he tries to communicate the why and how, Charley breaks down in tears. He just doesn't understand why his family's land is going to be taken away from him. Dana Andrews is the go-between: the city man who frequently visits the land and has a relationship with the farmers. He feels bad for Charley, but there's not much he can do to change the situation. Instead, he tries to get them to adjust to the new ways of the world.

This movie is very depressing. If you think it's going to be one giant laugh at ignorant hicks, you should rent something else tonight. It's very heavy and it never lightens up. It's hard to believe the original novel was even more dramatic, but it was! Screenwriter Nunnally Johnson successfully tamed down the story as much as he could, even though as you're watching it, it doesn't feel like it. If you can handle it, you'll see a once-in-a-career performance from Charley Grapewin. You'll also see Slim Summerville and Ward Bond, which is always a treat.

Important film by the legendary director John Ford and the even more legendary producer Darryl F. Zanuck, "Tobacco Road" is undoubtely well-made, with a bountyful photography and and an interesting theme on its background: the struggles of an impoverished family of farmers in the South of the United States. The wonderful Gene Tierney, in one of her first movie acting roles, is perhaps a little miscasted (it would happen to her again), as she is portrayed as a slightly outwitted daughter of the Lester family.

And that leads us to the main problem of the film, in my opinion: if you, like I am, are quite unfamiliar and unwilling to cope with a plot and acting in which all of the characters - all of them - are depicted simply as idiots, and doing idiotic things most of the time (let's except, say, 2-3 minutes), then "Tobacco road" is probabily not your cup of tea.

A very rare instance when I couldn't get through a movie. After about 40 minutes I couldn't take any more of the hymn singing and the screaming of these stupid, stupid, unsympathetic characters. I'm not familiar with the play the movie's based on, but Ford's version elicits only disdain for these characters, rather than empathy. And Ford's lapdog, Ward Bond, always creeps me out. After reading his bio, it turns out he was exactly the kind of idiot I expected him to be.

Not my favorite Ford. Coming right after the moving, tragic, angry "Grapes Of Wrath" it's a way too broadly comic look at poor rural folks, as if Victor McLaglen was the assistant director or, to jump ahead in time, "The Real McCoys" decided to go PG. I miss the penumbra of sadness that all good Ford films have (the great ones have more than a penumbra) and I also miss the Ford stock company who, with the exception of Ward Bond , is MIA. C plus.

PS...When Ford decides to knock a woman off his pedestal he really goes call the way, huh? Referring of course to Ms. Tierney lusting in the dust.

I saw John Ford and I thought wow undiscovered gold. I was wrong. I was hoping for a Steinbeck masterpiece like The Grapes of Wrath. Boy did I get a surprise. This is a cartoon. A child's movie. A dung heap of a movie. Do yourself a solid, do not waste your time.

This film is so Great because it is full of contrasts. One minute it is the most funny unbelievable thing you've ever seen and the next your in tears. The sadness and the hilarity are spliced together with moments of shock and horror. Tobacco Road exposes the sweet, sensitive and loving qualities of humanity, and at the same time remind us that we are riddled with meanness, selfishness, and stupidity. I have watched this film many times and never tire of viewing it, it always moves me. It has been one of my very favorites since I first saw it on American Movie Classics.

I just can't believe that it hasn't been remastered and released on DVD!!! I believe it was released on VHS years ago, it is super hard to find and goes for big $'s (and who uses VHS anymore anyway?) C'mon Criterion get with it, this movie deserves it. I got so desperate to see this Masterpiece that I bought a VHS copy on eBay but it is so terrible, blurry, fuzzy, and the sound inaudible, I would not dare share it with anyone because none of the Genius would be conveyed. This guy on eBay was selling lots to folks like myself wishing to have our own so we could watch it again and again, and share this Great Film with friends. It's the only film in my top 10, that hasn't been, or isn't scheduled for remastering. Come on re-master executives, what's the problem?

Dirt poor, elderly Georgia farmer Jeeter Lester (Charley Grapewin) schemes to get some money so that he and his wife Ada (Elizabeth Patterson) can remain at their dilapidated frame house on Tobacco Road, in this Great Depression era story, part comedy, part drama.

As country hicks, most of the characters are rather too stereotyped to be realistic. The film's script is very talky, not surprising since the story originated as a stage play. The film's plot varies wildly from slapstick comedy to morose drama. And therein lies the main problem.

Rural poverty in the South during the 1930s was no laughing matter. It was an intensely painful and prolonged episode of human misery. I can understand how viewers in those days needed some comic relief, but not in a story about poverty. The hyper-antics of young Dude, the film's comic relief, are extremely annoying. Those scenes dilute the seriousness of the film's underlying theme. And the subplot wherein Dude and Sister Bessie go off together seems like plot filler.

Charley Grapewin gives a fine performance in the lead role. But Marjorie Rambeau as Sister Bessie, and William Tracy as Dude overact. Part of this overacting could have been the result of poor film direction.

The film's background music runs the gamut from frivolous and nondescript in the comedic scenes to old-time gospel songs like "Shall We Gather At The River" during more serious moments.

Given the era in which the film was made, "Tobacco Road" is okay, if you give it some slack. But the story would have been better without the slapstick comedy. In any event, it's a good movie to watch when you're depressed and think things can't get much worse.