Review Copyright Cassandra Henry, 2003

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"We should look to the Bible, it is full of war." Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson (Stephen Lang) CASS' CLIP (WARNING: **spoilers below**) A George Eliot quote and a backdrop of waving state flags opens Gods and Generals . A representative, on President Abraham Lincolnís behalf, advises Colonel Robert E. Lee (Robert Duvall) that the president wants him to command the Union army against the Confederate rebels. Lee declines President Lincolnís request choosing instead to fight and maintain the way of life of his beloved state of Virginia. "I never thought Iíd see the day when a President of the United States would invade his own country," Lee states. Joining Lee against the Union is General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson (Stephen Lang), a professor at the Virginia Military Institute (VMI). Defending the north is Boston college professor, Colonel Joshua Chamberlain (Jeff Daniels), his brother, Lieutenant Thomas Chamberlain (C. Thomas Howell) and General Winfield Scott Hancock (Brian Mallon) representing the Irish brigade. Gods and Generals focuses on these generals (more on Stonewall Jackson) and their heroic attempts to fight for their beliefs during the Civil War from 1861 through 1863. Subtitles identify the three major battles -- Bull Run, Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville -- where thousands of Civil War re-enactors march, shoot and look straight into the camera before they die on cue. Okay, okay, enough with this crap. Gods and Generalsis four-hours long. As Stonewall Jackson said, "War is too terrible that we should grow fond of it," and it would be a terrible thing if I wasted another minute trying to explain what Maxwell couldnít explain in four hours. All that darn praying on the battlefield came across disingenuously and the hymn-like musical score sent me over the edge. Lawd knows I shouldíve left during the intermission. DA 411 How does a zillionare and a Civil War enthusiast spend $55 million in pocket change? In media mogul and philanthropist Ted Turnerís case, he financially backed writer-director Ronald Maxwellís movie,Gods and Generals. [That money alone could have gone toward the 40 acres and a mule the guvMint promised the slaves]. G&G is the prequel to Michael and Jeff Shaaraís Civil War novel trilogy. The order -- Gods and Generals, The Killer Angels, (which Maxwellís 1993 film Gettysburg was based), and finally, The Last Full Measure. Even though many of the actors in Gettysburg reprise their roles in G&G, there was a lot of recasting of the various characters. I went to seeGods and Generals for several reasons: (1) despite the fact that he was fighting for the south, Iím still a big Robert Duvall fan; (2) to see what part God played in the minds and hearts of those who fought for or against slavery; and, (3) being a southerner, I was curious to see if the South won. However, I donít know what I hated more about this movie, the sheer fact that it was four-hours long, or that there were only two black characters (Frankie Faison and Donzaleigh Abernathy) who had speaking roles. Iím not criticizing Faison or Abernathyís acting, because they did the best they could with their utterly unbelievable characters and the downright stupid dialogue. Now that I think about it, since the Civil War wasnít really about slavery, Iím glad WE werenít really in this Gawd awful movie anyway. I was unimpressed with the acting by the main characters, Stephen Lang, Robert Duvall and Jeff Daniels, and what screen time Mira Sovino and Kali Rocha had as the supporting spouses, was like watching bad Star Searchudition performances. Maxwell would have done better if his adaptation of Jeff Shaaraís novel had been seen as four one-hour Civil War re-enactments on the History Channel. The one question I asked several moviegoers as we were all literally running out of the theater was, "When watching this movie what was more important, the historical accuracy or a cohesive storyline with believable characters?" Donít waste your time watching Gods and Generals trying to find the answer to this question. CASS' CONCLUSION Civil War buffs will probably enjoy this movie, but regular moviegoers will be bored to death! Besides, there was nothing civil about this war. GODS AND GENERALS: back to top Copyright Cassandra Henry, 2003 EMAIL: cass@3blackchicks.com