If you like watching Dennis Quaid think...

Rating: Null/10 (6 April 2004)

then this is the movie for you. Just because there are hardly any serious action scenes in the first 90 minutes of the movie doesn't mean the pace had to be so slow. Except for David (as he preferred) Crockett, the main characters are presented as angels with dirty faces and alcoholics with hearts of gold. They all glower and mumble like Brando. The only exciting characters and riveting actors were Billy Bob Thornton (Crockett) and Echevarria as the deliciously evil General Santa Ana.
I've heard that the film has been re-edited several times in response to negative audience reactions at test screenings. The advance screening audience I was with last night (who saw it for free) not only did not applaud, someone gave the movie a well-deserved boo.
It still needs editing. The spectacular battle scenes could have been presented earlier, with the slow bits shown as flashbacks. I felt like I was sitting through a dry history lesson. "The Alamo" comes across as a Ken Burns documentary, but less exciting.