Gettysburg (Widescreen Edition)

With all the research that went into this to make it true and factual, this was a very riveting movie all people should see for a truer historical count as to what really lead up to this massive battle in Gettysburg, PA...

Not too many war movies can make you understand how brutal, exhausting, emotionally painful, draining, exciting, boring, glorious and ugly war is, but this is one of them. The scenes of the march starting Pickett's charge alone will blow you away - I understand thousands of men were crying just reenacting it. The combination of excitement and terror are caught so well at Little Round Top and Pickett's charge that you just can't stop watching. For the acting - Jeff Daniels nails Joshua Chamberlain - scholar, soldier and brother - so well, I couldn't believe it was Jeff Daniels. Richard Jordan as "Lo" Armistead - what can you say? The man was an incredible actor his entire career, and this, his last performance, a doomed man playing a doomed man - I don't know how he found the inner strength to do it, but it's the best work he ever did. And while I thought Martin Sheen was miscast at first, the more I watch his performance, the more subtleties I catch, the more I think this might have been his best work, too. The best thing was that this film made me understand the Civil War and the battle of Gettysburg with an intimacy I never knew before. It's like a million men from 1863 all looked me in the eye and said, "NOW do you understand?" Well, not as well as you did, but a lot better than I did before.

Gettysburg (Widescreen Edition)
I first experienced this historical event on Video, it was very moving indeed. Now transferred to DVD, so much more detail seems to be available - including greatly improved sound. Any person with a serious interest in the history of the American Civil War will find this widescreen DVD of great interest. For those with little interest in the history of that time, Gettyburg is a clear reminder of what today the USA stands for - thats freedom.

Though pretty historically accurate, you never really get the real sense of battle in this. That's because the battle scenes are largely played by 're-enactors' who do this all the time. Many look lethargic, not like men ducking death from lead bullets flying all around. The real battle would have been much more chaotic. Steven Spielberg probably should have made this to give it the realistic touch so desperately needed. It comes across like a school play with a big budget. The extras are good, though. The best way to watch it is with the commentary track on. You'll get a far better history lesson than from the 'drama' the film attempts to portray.

Gettysburg is a great movie, and one of my all time favorite war films. When I watched this I had an old love for history rekindled. I then went and read the book that this movie was based off of "Killer Angles" by Michael Shaara. Then from there I started looking up some of the characters like Chamberlain, seeing as he's not taught in schools, to find he did exist, he was there, he did do that, and from there I decided to study the Civil War. Civil War enthusiasts, will enjoy this film, it's heart touching, and shows you in a vague manner, what the war was like.