'The Patriot' (2000)

Rating: 8/10 (14 April 2012)

'The Patriot' stands as a well-made and entertaining war movie. Although historically inaccurate in many aspects, the film is well-acted, and is *satisfying* I would say to the 21st century viewer. It is basically more a good old fashioned tale of revenge, using the Revolutionary War as a backdrop for this scenario. Our characters act out their parts well for the most part, and those who act and say their lines too extravagantly or over-the-top are not easily recognized as such. The dialogue is only vaguely reminiscent of how real Colonial peoples would have spoken, but all of this is easily overshadowed by Roland Emmerich's quite expertly done direction, and Robert Rodat's triumphant screenplay.
Mel Gibson is quite notable. I have never seen 'Braveheart' but I don't imagine I would like it much, and 'The Patriot' is good enough for me, solidifying Gibson into the role of action superstar. It is also an interesting piece for the Heath Ledger completist, although this isn't his best role, it is definitely a step up from 1999's '10 Things I Hate About You', and he plays his part with determination. Most convincing though, would probably be Jason Isaacs who plays the main antagonist, a fictional (I believe) colonel of the British Army. I rather enjoyed this film, and I felt that there was a very perfect balance between the action and the drama, and using mostly fictional characters helped to propel the film along, with the freedom to liberally create our own back stories for most of our characters. Although people interested in the truth behind the story of the Revolutionary War might want to look elsewhere, as there is only once scene I believe where General George Washington even makes an appearance. General Cornwallis, played by Tom Wilkinson, was a real person, and he is probably the realest character we are going to milk out of this one, and he probably does it the best out of any of these people.
I wouldn't say 'The Patriot' is better than 'Saving Private Ryan', but I would say that it comes damn close.
THE PATRIOT -----8/10.