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This Thread Lists a bunch of Civil War movies, and debates the relative merits of them.

If you could have a movie made on the subject, what would it be?

I'd like to see something on Fredricksburg, since a film of that battle could show the folly of war and the still pay tribute to the courage of those who fought it, and it might be an engagement unknown enough to John Q. Public that the story wouldn't be repetitious.

The movie Gods and Generals covers Fredericksburg pretty good

A good treatment of Shiloh would be nice. It's got pretty much everything. A surprise attack, mass confusion, stubborn basically suicidal defense, the death of a major player, the timely rescue and turnabout on day 2. Seems like it would be perfect for a good flick. Problem is, that nothing really came of it since Halleck insisted on squandering the advantage gained.

bloodybucket wrote:If you could have a movie made on the subject, what would it be?

Isaac Brown and the Arkansas

I saw both Gettysburg and Gods and Generals when they were first released in the theater.

While I enjoyed Gettysburg, I walked out on Gods and Generals, largley due to the sickenly sweet dialogue. I swear I was laughing out loud at some points as it was so bad.

It seems the characters were either reciting their wedding vows, a speech or a bible sermon. I don't know how anyone could put up with it for the 3 3/4hours. I know I couldn't. I tried...oh how I tried.

Whoops...I must have posted this in the wrong thread by accident! I meant to post this in the linked thread above!

Back on topic: I would like to see a modern treatment of Lincoln and his trials as the Commander in Chief during the Civil War.

I'd rate Glory #1 with Cold Mountain 2nd.

I agree the dialogue in G'burg & G&Gs is too contrived. Ted Turner's attempt to teach history to the masses.

I would like to see some made on Shiloh, Chickamauga, and Chattanooga. I think those would be very good.

I just saw Buster Keaton's "The General" for the first time, and it jogged an old memory...sure enough, Disney did "The Great Locomotive Chase" in 1956 with Fess Parker and Jeffery Hunter. I wonder if it will ever be remade again?

Well with the new book out called Stealing the General: The Great Locomotive Chase and the First Medal of Honor by Russell Bonds, there may be another movie about it yet, who knows.

Mike wrote:I'd rate Glory #1 with Cold Mountain 2nd.

I agree the dialogue in G'burg & G&Gs is too contrived. Ted Turner's attempt to teach history to the masses.

I agree. Glory's easily #1. Cold Mountain unfourtantly (for my own interests, it's an excellent movie on it's own merits though) doesn't really focus on what I consider to be the more "interesting" parts of the war, but I thought where the war infringed on the drama it was focused on, it was done quite well.


A bio-epic on Sherman would be fascinating. Easily one of the more compelling personnalities and underrated as a topic. Lee, Lincoln, and Grant have been done to death and unfourtantly anything to do with them is an invitation to nitpicking and criticism. No chance you could make everyone happy with any treatment of them.

In terms of "battles", Chancellorsville (but it'll inevitably come across as Lee/Jackson worship), Shiloh (underrated as a battle topic), and the Wilderness campaign.

If you wanted to do a "solider's life" deal, the siege around Richmond and Petersburg of course.

And something with a little more western flavor, any of the more infamous Missouri partisans.

And for a naval picture? Easy, slam dunk picture i'm shocked hasn't been made yet. Follow the Alabama and the USS Kearsarge immediately leading up to their famous duel (and of course, have the duel be the climax of the movie) outside of Cherbourg.

i have seen both "gettysburg" and "gods and generals" done by ted turner, i have also seen glory but not cold mountain. i must say though....glory was great, however i liked the other two better. i know gods and generals was slow at first, but you should have given it a chance. it is a great film. i now own both of them. they were going to make a 3rd movie to be called "the full measure" to go along with the book. however it was cancelled because gods did poorly in the box office. this kinda upsets me because i feel it to be an excellent movie. as a matter of fact....i find it disgracefull that a movie like broke back mountain can do soo good but not a real history movie about the building of your country....for same usa.....for shame.

Glory is not only my favorite Civil War movie, but one of my top 10 movies of all time. Certainly my favorite war movie. Cold Mountain did nothing for me because it really wasn't a 'Civil War movie', but rather a love story that just happened to take place then. That's like calling Gone With The Wind a Civil War movie.

That said, the first 15 minutes with the Crater scene was pretty well done.

Someone should make a Shiloh movie....for all the reasons mentioned before.

Surprised no one has mentioned the real classics Gone with the wind of course Shenandoha with James Stuart even if I can't spell it and Audie Murphy and the Red badge of courage watched that as a child up in the cold hills of Scotland it sparked an interest in the subject that has lasted to this day. Funny though Audie wore blue but I always rooted for those in grey. As for what they missed or what they should do now not really sure though perhaps Bernard Cornwalls fictional books on the subject would make a good war story. Starting with Rebel I think it was called.

I've seen Glory and it's the only one i saw on the ACW. I think i'd remember otherwise.

The CW is mentioned, but not the main plot of the story ...in a movie, much more recent and whose name is currently slipping of the grasp of my few neurons, with Jude Law and Nicole Kidman.

Glory is a great movie that shows both sides of the northern medal against slavery...the side of the opportunity for using thousands of slaves as conscript, and the side of bravery...their desire to fight for a nation that will be theirs too. They fight for their freedom and for the USA at the same time, under command of a brave Colonel. Wonderful movie.

Now, i was guessing, how comes we haven't got a real sounds mod? It after all it only takes some good mp3 soundtracks to add to the nice tunes the stock game already has.

It would be nice to include the ST of these movies.

i'd like to see movies about the the people not that much in the headlines of the public, like Forrest, Mosby, Quantrill
(ok theres one movie of that kind, cant remember name right now)


edit: "Ride with the devil" it is

GShock wrote:The CW is mentioned, but not the main plot of the story ...in a movie, much more recent and whose name is currently slipping of the grasp of my few neurons, with Jude Law and Nicole Kidman.

Cold mountain (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0159365/)

I'd say it's more than mentioned, since you get scenes from e.g. the Battle of the Crater, not to mention quite a lot from how daily life was, away from the frontlines.

I'm surprised that nobody has yet mentioned how few ACW movies have been made.

Especially given its importance to American history, and relative to the many, many movies made about WWII and other conflicts.

I think the problem is that movie makers are too concerned with political correctness and not offending anybody. We wouldn't want half our domestic market (either the South or the North) angry and boycotting the movie, now would we? Hence the overly even-handed and hagiographic (and somewhat boring) treatment of the War in Gettysburg and Gods & Generals.

That said, my favorite is without a doubt Glory. Definitely in my all time (all genre) top 20 list.

I'd like to see many more movies made about the Civil War. How about movies on:

--Any of the great cavalry raids, both North and South. (Streight's raid across Northern Alabama, with Forrest in hot pursuit. Wow, what a story! Or Morgan's Great Raid.)
--Any of the great riverine naval confrontations. (Monitor & Merrimac.)
--Yes, Shiloh.
--Antietam.
--Missionary Ridge!
--Fort Sumter.
--Appomattox.
--Generals biopics.
--Etc., etc.

BTW, if you didn't know, I heard that Steven Spielberg is working on a film of Abraham (Liam Neeson) and Mary Todd (Sally Field) Lincoln set during the War years.

berto wrote:
... Streight's raid across Northern Alabama, with Forrest in hot pursuit...

Hi!

I think John Ford's excellent "The horse soldiers" is based (more or less loosely) on that raid.
Don´t remember if the historical names are used but the situation is certainly very similar.
Great old film, with John Wayne, William Holden...

Cheers!

Yes, this was an excellent movie...

Another one, with William Holden and Richard Widmark, called "Alvarez Kelly" (I guess) was great too...

I would love to see a epic movie beginning with a short narritive overview history of the war thus far leading up to and coming to a start in the Unions camps on the Rappahannock in Virginia, May 1864 and traceing the last year to May 1865. Thus we join Grant and Meade as they progress into the end game. Wilderness, Spotsalvania, Anna River, Cold Harbor. The final bloody campaign ending at the siege of Petersburg, the fall of Richmond, the chase to Appomattox. Man oh man there is enough subject matter in the last 12 Months in Virginia to make 4 Gettysburgs!

Uh, drolling at the thought of such an epic in my lifetime.

maybe it's too broad a subject, but i'd like to see something about sherman's march to the sea...sort of illustrate the horror of "total war" that may have been necessary to end the conflict instead of the "gentleman's war" feeling like i got from gettysburg and gods & generals (still excellent movie though, gettysburg...gods...blah)...something more gritty and dark and real but equally crucial and at a larger scale than one single battle...and not so much grandiose dialog....is there something out like that, other than a documentary?

When I was younger, I read "Rifles for Watie," by Harold Keith. It's a book for young adults about a boy who enlists in Kansas in 1861. I thought it was fantastic at the time I read it. I haven't picked it up for several years, but it is a good "coming of age" story that could translate to the screen well.

I think Sheridan's ride at Cedar Creek would make a great movie. It is all in one day. Things are going to hell in a handbasket, and Sheridan makes his famous ride that turns it all around. Can't you just hear the uplifting theme music ala Braveheart or some such movie.

Gettysburg is #1 for me, I was a HUGE fan of Tom Berringer's portrayal of Longstreet, even if it was completely inaccurate. I was also pretty fond of Martin Sheen's Lee....and I'm of course a big fan of Jeff Daniels.

Glory was great

Gods and Generals was VERY meladramatic...despite it all though I found my way through it and was impressed overall. Whoever wrote those scripts though needs to be shot .

"The Monitor and the Merrimack" was good for its time. I think it starred that hot blonde chick from "Sideways"...only when she was younger...and hotter.

To be honest...I know it may seem like sacrilige, but I think Shelby Foote's entire treatment of ANY portion of the war should be redone on-screen damn near verbatim....If Tom Hanks and Stephen Spielberg ever got a-hold of an idea like that for a mini-series or something....look out. Emmy's out the wazoo. "Band of Brothers" is easily one of the greatest WWII film series' of all time.

Banks6060 wrote:Gods and Generals was VERY meladramatic...despite it all though I found my way through it and was impressed overall. Whoever wrote those scripts though needs to be shot .

What, you didn't like Stonewall Jackson declaring holy war on the evil invading United States?

My most wanted, not yet made movie would be something covering:

[SIZE="5"][color="Red"]Antietam[/color][/size]

I remember Gods and Generals, its the most recently made ACW war film i have seen, although I dont look out specifc for them. If I recall correctly that Film coverd Thomas Jackson's demise. I didnt know he was shot by accident by his own men in the night, who thought he was an enemy.

The previous ACW one I have seen that stands out was Glory, another star studded cast, although the actors in that one were still unkowns at the time, compared to their current status.

I would like to see one based on the corruption of the southern aristocracy, especially Charleston, that caused the war and profitted greatly from it (the war) and reconstruction.

Mini-series?

PS-could make a great game

Southern WASP wrote:I would like to see one based on the corruption of the southern aristocracy, especially Charleston, that caused the war and profitted greatly from it (the war) and reconstruction.

"Gone with the Wind"? Perhaps combined with "North and South"?

Ride with the Devil is much better than I expected. Come on, it has Jewel, Jesus, and SPIDER MAN! But seriously, it was a good flick.

I would like to see a 1864 Grant takes command movie. Lots of drama. Andit could long, like th 7 hour Russian War and Peace.

Or turn the book Cloudsplitter, a fictional account of John Brown, into a movie.