Cold Mountain

Rating: 6/10 (5 December 2006)

I heard about this at the Oscars, a countdown show, and saw the trailer, and the result of the seeing the film was alright. The film does start off going backwards in time with Inman (Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe nominated Jude Law) meeting Ada Monroe (Golden Globe nominated Nicole Kidman) and they have a short close relationship before he leaves to fight in the Civil War. He comes close to losing his life, but is rescued and has no way to find his "love" but to go back to her town, Cold Mountain. Meanwhile, she believes he is dead, and a lot happens to her as he is travelling. Her Dad, Reverend Monroe (Donald Sutherland) dies, and she gets a new friend acting almost as a servant, Ruby Thewes (Oscar, BAFTA and Golden Globe winning Renée Zellweger). He does get back eventually, after many stops and some captures, and do get to have a proper love, till the almost-teary ending. Also starring Eileen Atkins as Maddy, Brendan Gleeson as Stobrod Thewes, Philip Seymour Hoffman as Reverend Veasey, Natalie Portman as Sara, Giovanni Ribisi as Junior, Ray Winstone as Teague, Kathy Baker as Sally Swanger, James Gammon as Esco Swanger, Charlie Hunnam as Bosie, Jack White as Georgia and My Name Is Earl's Ethan Suplee as Pangle. Zellweger was good, I guess she deserved her Oscar against the other nominees, but she should have won for a better role, say Chicago or Bridget Jones. It was nominated the Oscars for Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Music for Gabriel Yared, Best Song for T-Bone Burnett and Elvis Costello's "Scarlet Tide" and Best Song for Sting's "You Will Be My Ain True Love" (also nominated the Golden Globe), it won the BAFTA for the Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music, and it was nominated for the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design, Best EditingBest Make Up/Hair, Best Production Design, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Sound, the David Lean Award for Direction for Anthony Minghella (The English Patient) and Best Film, and it was nominated the Golden Globes for Best Director, Best Motion Picture - Drama, Best Original Score and Best Screenplay. It was number 96 on The 100 Greatest War Films. Good!