Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

[Elliott'sSprout]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

Though there are a few inaccuracies in it, Ride with the Devil is one of my favorite Civil War movies ever. Even if Toby McGuire sucked in it.

[tomarch]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

I haven't seen any over the past four years or so, but I'm going to reach waaaay back and say my two favorite C.W. films are:
1.) The General (silent) w/ Buster Keaton, just for the periood railroad equipment (except for the flatcar mountes mortar) and the civillian dress

2.) The Red Badge of Courage w/ Audie Murphy and Bill Mauldin. Yeah I know, the material culture is bad, but the attitudes and actions of the characters make up for it in spades! Lots of cameos by good old standard Western character actors.

[Canebrake Rifle Guards]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

The Rose & The Jackel.

Not a good movie, and even had a real anachronism which I caught after a couple of viewings (I had some friends in it, otherwise I wouldn't watch it more than once.)

In the first five minuntes in the crowd scene they have a shot which includes some sort of 20th Century delivery man or heating/cooling repairman.

I've attached a still of said scene. When you see the video you can observe the guy looking around like "cool, what's going on here?"

Greg Starbuck

[Indianabugles]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

Glory and Ride with the devil. Purely for the passion and anger they evoked in me. Even my wife was moved by Glory and she likes gone with the wind!!
I'll add another!!!

The Good the bad and the ugly??

Only joking!!

[chris stevans]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

How about Pharoah's Army? Not a very well known flick, but pretty decent all the same.

[Sweatshop Tailor]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

My nomination for best Civil War film of all time is definitely Ride with the Devil (with Glory as runner-up). I read the book it was based on, and from which the superb dialogue was lifted in parts word for word, before ever seeing the film (the book is Woe to Live On by Daniel Woodrell). Amazingly the film did justice to the book. As a southern 'Dutchman' on my mother's side I got to love a film where the hero is a Missouri German!

[Pvt.Hale]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

Ride with the Devil. Any film where Jewel breast feeds is an instant classic!

[WoodenNutmeg]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

[Vicksburg Dave]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

Normally I let old threads lie, but in this case I saw something I could not resist sharing. I was previewing a boxed set of Civil War battle dvds this week when something that caught my eye that just floored me. The reenactment footage used in the film is late 70s, early 80s, with lots of mullets, kepis, gaiters, and havelocks, but what astounded me was the background to the title screen. In it a determined Yank reenactor charges the CS line with a freshly lit Marlboro clenched between his teeth. It's great! The guy is trying to bayonet Confederates and look fierce, all the while never relinquishing his cigarette. You can tell that he must have just lit it before called to do the scene, and like many smokers, he was not going to give up his smoke unless they removed it from his cold dead hands. ;)

[Dutchman Dick]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

I thought "The Blue and the Gray" was excellent, myself. It was originally a TV mini-series from 1982, now available in a 2-disk DVD set. Don't know how good it is from an authenticity standpoint (lack of experience on my part), but it was a great story!

[2nd Lt. Samuel Teague]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

I am shocked that none of your posts included any comments on the film by D.W. Griffith, "Birth of a Nation." Although it glorifies the clan a bit too much, the part depicting the war itself is very interesting. Considering the movie was made in 1915, it also holds some merit in that there were readily available actual veterans who could offer their perspectives. It is a silent film tht last over 4 hours, but it really gives insight into not just the war, but how the sons and grandsons felt about the event. Incidentally, the film sparked race riots across both the north and south.

Just thought I'd add it to the list!

~Matt Wood

[WoodenNutmeg]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

Twain wrote that he later found out that the Union troops they were avoiding were led by an Illinois Colonel named U.S. Grant.

This is as true as much as it is ironic, seeing as how Twain would end up making a fortune publishing Grant's memoirs years later.

[MoFed]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

The Private History of a Campaign That Failed (1981) (TV)

I loved this movie. For anyone coming to Athens or doing any other 1861 event in Missouri, this flick captures the essence of the Missouri State Guard (albeit the bulk of the MSG performed better than Twain's company/squad). This story is set in the summer of 1861, just a bit south of where the battle of Athens was fought. Twain wrote that he later found out that the Union troops they were avoiding were led by an Illinois Colonel named U.S. Grant.

[Benedict]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

HAHA I just watched Red Badge Of Courage on OnDemand. That movie was a joke!

Just watching it on German TV - badly dubbed ... And boy, there are some farbs in this movie :D At least the muskets seem original/authentic.

Edit: Except for the Springfield Trapdoors ...

[37thtenn]

Re: Best Civil War films (or rather, the lack thereof)...

ahhhh sabres of shame.we get together once a year and watch that movie.My favorite part is when the ac comes on during the dinner scene.