Tom catches up with his family while they discuss their plans to move to California in search of a new home and work. The next day, the extended Joad Family of twelve prepares to leave in their dilapidated and old truck for a long journey west to the “promised land.” The family grows tired while traveling Highway 66 and must stop to bury the first deceased from the trip, Grandpa. They speak a few words and leave a note saying that he died of natural causes. They stop at a migrant campground and meet a man who just can from California who warns them that there is no point in going. Before they continue the journey Pa goes inside a diner and asks to buy a loaf of bread for 10 cents. The waitress refuses at first but then opens her heart and even lets him buy two pieces of candy for some children for only a penny when it was really five cent each candy. The Joads drive further and cross the state border to Arizona and are stopped before they cross the desert and warned that it is dangerous to go through the desert in “such a jalopy like that.” They still continue with the adult’s hopes of making it to California, the children fantasizing on finding the bones of those trying to cross the desert in failed attempts and grandma delirious and nearly dead. At another stop, officers ask them to empty the truck to check if they have taken any fruit to cross the border. Ma convinces the officers to let them pass because grandma is sick and near death- but no one but Ma knows that grandma is already dead at that time.
The next scene opens with the family pushing the truck up a hill to bring the family to a scenic overlook, where they gasp at the beauty of the valley. Ma then breaks the new that grandma passed away that night before they were stopped. The family arrives at their temporary home, Hooverville Migrant Camp, but leave due to a threat of the camp being burned down. On a stop to fix a flat tire, a man informs the Joads that there is work at the Keene Fruit Ranch and the family immediately agrees to the job, however there is a huge crowd outside the ranch and the family does not know why. Tom sneaks out and finds that they crowd were workers on strike and the wages will go down fifty percent when the strike settles. A noise in the brush is heard and security guards confront them and there is a dispute. A guard kills Casy so Tom fights back and kills the guard, but not before Tom is severely injured on his cheek. He runs back to the cabin and is cared for by his family. Tom can no longer be seen by anyone outside the family or he is risked getting caught for murder and violation of parole. The family must set off once again and leave while escaping detection. At the top of a hill, the care runs out of gas, and they are able to coast into a third type of camp- a clean, democratically run, self-governing Department of Agriculture camp. The camp seems promising to the Joads since officials are elected by the people of that camp and the only police are ones chosen. Some of the family go to a dance one Saturday night to have fun, but a plan by outsiders to disturb peace and bring police to the area changes the mood. During the night while the camp sleeps, a pair of deputies is ushered to camp to check the Joad family’s car license. Tom witnesses their search and quickly dresses and begins to pack. He realizes that they will be back with a search warrant and he will be pursued as a fugitive and parolee. His time is short and he must leave his family permanently. Tom speaks to his mother on the empty dance floor of the camp and they are forced to say their final goodbyes and he leaves forever.
The next day the family goes on a search for “twenty day work” near Fresno and Ma and Pa have a conversation and their future and fear. After the loss of her stillborn baby, their daughter, Rosasharn offers her maternal breast, filled with milk, to be suckled by a starving man in a railroad car. The films final shot shows a line of truck and cars moving along through the countryside.
After seeing this movie, I grew more aware of the hardship of those searching for work. I always knew that it was a difficult time especially with the Depression going on, but I was never aware that so many people faced such difficulty and so many people died in pursuing the dream to even set foot on California’s soil. To see that even five cents was valued so highly was also amazing since it won’t even pay tax at the present day. Also I was unaware that people were being checked at the border of states, I thought that was something that only happened on the border of the U.S. and Mexico. It is sad to think of the cruelty that the families faced and even the police, whose job was to enforce the law with justice, were corrupt and evil. So many people worked hard everyday but were walked on and treated even worse than dirt.
