Another movie that surprised me....

Rating: 7/10 (24 September 2003)

And in a good way, too. Given the title and subject material, I had expected to be deluged with "Isn't America a wonderful nation" type of dialogue and endless exposition of how freedom is to be valued etc. Whilst there is a certain amount of this, it was nowhere near as bad as I had feared an, as a result, I found myself enjoying the film for what it was - one man's struggle with his own demons and morals - and not yawning my way through the propaganda.
Gibson gives a solid performance as the aforementioned haunted individual, reluctant to take up arms against the British as he knows what horrors war will bring.
The British are portrayed variously as strutting fools or vicious, callous murderers. Jason Isaacs in particular is excellent as the commander who will stop at nothing to get the job done - in this case, crushing the American rebels. As a Brit, I suppose I should be more upset at the portrayal of my countrymen, but I know well what a dark time our colonial past was, so it didn't actually bother me. I actually found the characterisations rather humorous, which was perhaps unintentional. However, the characters are far too one-dimensional to take much exception to.
There are some interesting battle scenes and some eye-openers too. For instance, the thought that warfare was once conducted by lines of men standing facing each other and shooting until one side was completely wiped out or ran away made me smile in disbelief at the foolishness of it all. The fact that it is also true is the most shocking thing. Now, of course, we can obliterate an enemy without ever having to look in his eyes, so you tell me which is the most insane.
The story did seem to drag slightly in places, but not overly much, and the plot threads are very predictable. You know who will end up with who and who will die, who will win over the friendship of who, despite mistrust etc. But this does not harm the story in any real way.
Overall one of those movies that will probably end up being shown on TV at holiday times. Worth a look.