A definite go rent it right now....& make your whole family watch it

Rating: 10/10 (23 March 2000)

CONTAINS SPOLIERS
This was a great movie AND I watched it 5 times in the 4 days of rental that I had it. That's almost a whole day of my life, but it was definitely worth it. I was initially disappointed having read the book and knowing many of the details that had been left out, but really, how much can you cram into 4+ hours?! Everything was awesome, especially the music...sure there were some things which didn't fit such as Lee's army not being very "lean", but hey, I think that no better tribute could have been paid than by using actual civil war re-enactors who know the scope of the situation and who had to outfit themselves. I also think a magnificent job was done in finding actors who looked and acted the part. Longstreet and Pickett were exactly as I expected them to be. The tie between Armistead and Hancock was a tear-jerker as was the loss of men in Hood and Pickett's divisions. The only REAL disappointment was Chamberlain. I think he is great, but Jeff Daniels just did not pull it off for me. Yeah he may have looked the part, but in the way he characterised Chamberlain he just didn't seem like a professor. For one thing, he never talked loudly or clearly enough until his order for "bayonets!!" which made him seem out of character. Of course they say his "ums" and constant repetition made him realistic, but the other officers (like Vincent) got by just fine without any of that. I guess you get used to him though and besides that, the movie is excellent. Wonderful wonderful music and I'd like to say that people shouldn't comment about historical information that they probably don't know much about and though I'm not a Gettysburg expert yet, I know that this movie is definitely NOT a waste of time and that even if your interest in the Civil War remains stagnant after watching it, you'll at least have learned something about your nation's history and perhaps shed a tear or two for the men of both sides who are remembered through this film....