Best Civil War Film?
« Thread started on: Jan 14th, 2008, 1:24pm »
Amongst the hundreds of films, documentaries and other movies dealing with the Civil War, which do you think is worthy of the top spot?
I personally have a great fondness of Gettysburg, the 1993 Ron Maxwell film about the 1863 battle. While it has the scope of a huge battle film, its main focus is the characters and the personal stories that lead them to do the things that they did. There is room for humor, sorrow and some deep thinking (particularly with Chamberlain's character). The music is wonderfully stunning and lifts my heart each time I listen to the score.
Another heavy hitter is the compainion piece, Gods and Generals, for many of the same reasons. Where Gettysburg is arguably a "Union" film, this film is much more "Confederate." Much of the same cast has returned in thier roles and the films are a perfect match for eachother in scope, dramatics and beauty. The story of General "Stonewall" Jackson is one that I particularly love and is beautifully protrayed by Stephen Lang (Gen. Pickett in Gettysburg). The roles of Chamberlain and Sgt. Killrain are reprised by Jeff Daniels and Kevin Conway respectively. Seeing the relationship as it blooms through both films makes thier time on screen together incredibly special and amazing to watch.
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