![]() It is difficult to imagine a more authentic and convincing presentation of the renowned general. The greatest triumph of Gods and Generals lies in Stephen Lang's splendid depiction of Stonewall Jackson. Sometimes it is like watching an animated wax museum. Other scenes have the feel of that favored entertainment of the mid-Victorians, the tableau vivant-but not very vivant. Actors still deliver, in spoken form, lines that their characters composed for written communication, making some scenes even more stilted than the 19th century actually was. On the other hand, Gods and Generals perpetuates some of its predecessor's weaknesses. And the artillery pieces actually recoil when fired. The makeup is better, too, so that the viewer does not see what appear to be beavers clinging to generals' chins, as in Gettysburg. Lee is infinitely superior to Martin Sheen's glassy-eyed performance in the earlier film. In some ways it is an improvement over Gettysburg. Like the Civil War soldiers it depicts, the film Gods and Generals has its triumphs and its defeats. ![]() Of this, more anon.Īctors still deliver, in spoken form, lines that their characters composed for written communication, making some scenes even more stilted than the 19th century actually was. One suspects that another reason the film skips Antietam is that it led to Abraham Lincoln's issuing the Emancipation Proclamation coverage of that document might have led viewers to suspect that the war had something to do with slavery. This omission occurs in part because Fredericksburg was the first combat experience of the key Gettysburg protagonist, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, and because it was the event for which the Union repulse of Pickett's charge at Gettysburg was a suitable payback. For example, Gods and Generals covers the battle of Fredericksburg while entirely omitting the much more pivotal battle of Antietam. The need to set the stage for Gettysburg influenced the choice of what to cover in the almost four-hour-long prequel. The new film's purpose is to sketch highlights of the Civil War in the eastern theater from Virginia's secession through the death of the Confederate general Thomas J. As Gettysburg was based on the historical novel The Killer Angels (1974) by Michael Shaara, so Gods and Generals is based on the 1998 historical novel of that title written by Shaara's son Jeff. Long awaited by both historians and buffs, the film Gods and Generals is a prequel to the 1993 film Gettysburg. These reviews model ways of looking critically at popular films, documentaries, miniseries, and other history-based features. ![]() This is the fourth in a series of film reviews reprinted from the Journal of American History. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |