Gettysburg
Tags: violence, historical, murder

Plot synopsis:
The film begins with an account of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, commanded by Robert E. Lee, crossing the Potomac River to invade the North in June 1863, marching across Maryland and into Pennsylvania. On June 30, Confederate spy Henry Thomas Harrison reports to Lt. Gen. James Longstreet, commander of the First Corps, that the Union Army of the Potomac is moving in their direction, and that Union commander Joseph Hooker has been replaced by George Meade. Longstreet reports the information to General Lee, who is concerned that the army is moving "on the word of an actor", as opposed to that of his cavalry chief, J. E. B. Stuart. Nonetheless, Lee orders the army to concentrate near the town of Gettysburg. At the Union encampments near Union Mills, Maryland, Col. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain of the 20th Maine is ordered to take in 120 men from the disbanded 2nd Maine who had resigned in protest, with orders to shoot any man who refuses to fight. Chamberlain speaks to the men, and is able to persuade all but six to take up arms.
In Gettysburg, Brig. Gen. John Buford and his cavalry division spot elements of Henry Heth's division of A. P. Hill's Third Corps approaching the town, and judging the terrain to be "lovely ground", elect to stand and fight there. Buford sends word to I Corps commander Maj. Gen. John F. Reynolds to bring up reinforcements. Heth's troops engage Buford's cavalry the following morning, July 1, with Richard S. Ewell's Second Corps moving in to flank them. Reynolds brings his corps forward, but is killed by a Confederate sharpshooter. The Union army is pushed out of Gettysburg to Cemetery Ridge, and Lee - rejecting Longstreet's suggestion to redeploy south of Gettysburg and go on the defensive - orders Ewell to take the Union position "if practicable"; however, Ewell hesitates, and does not engage. The armies concentrate at their chosen positions for the remainder of the first day. At Confederate headquarters at Seminary Ridge, Maj. Gen. Isaac R. Trimble angrily denounces Ewell's inaction to Lee, and requests another assignment.
On the second day, July 2, Col. Strong Vincent's brigade from the Union V Corps is deployed to Little Round Top, and Vincent places the 20th Maine at the end of the line, warning Chamberlain that he and his regiment are the flank, and that if they retreat, the Confederate army can swing around behind them and rout the Union forces. Lee orders Longstreet to deploy his two available divisions to take Little Round Top and the neighboring Big Round Top. As Longstreet's corps deploys, Maj. Gen. John Bell Hood, commanding one of the divisions, protests to Longstreet; with the Union holding the high ground, he would lose half his forces if he attacked as ordered. Longstreet, despite his own protests to Lee, orders Hood to attack; Hood is later wounded fighting at Devil's Den. At the summit of Little Round Top, Chamberlain and the 20th Maine fight off wave after wave of advancing Confederates, and begin running out of ammunition. Colonel Vincent is mortally wounded, and none of the other three regiments in his brigade are able to provide support. Chamberlain orders his men to fix bayonets, and charge in a right wheel down the slope against the attacking Confederates. The attack successfully drives the Confederate assault back, and the Union flank holds. That evening, Stuart finally arrives, and Lee reprimands him for his being out of contact. At the same time, Longstreet's remaining division, under Maj. Gen. George Pickett, arrives on the field.
For the third day, July 3, Lee decides to send three divisions - Pickett's, Trimble's, and J. Johnston Pettigrew's - to attack the center of the Union line at Cemetery Ridge. Longstreet expresses his belief to Lee that the attack will fail, as the movement is a mile over open ground, and that the Union II Corps under Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock is deployed behind a stone wall, just as Longstreet's men had been at Fredericksburg. Lee nonetheless orders the attack to proceed. Longstreet then meets with the three division commanders and details the plan, beginning first with Colonel Edward Porter Alexander's artillery clearing the Union guns off the ridge, before deploying the men forward. Despite heavy Confederate fire, Alexander is unable to make an impact upon the Union guns; when Pickett asks to move forward, Longstreet simply nods. The Confederate divisions march across the open field, and Hancock is wounded as he commands from the front line. One of Pickett's brigades, commanded by Brig. Gen. Lewis Armistead, makes it over the stone wall, but Armistead is wounded and captured by Union troops. Pickett's Charge ultimately fails; meeting with Longstreet that evening, Lee finally decides that they will withdraw. The film ends with the fates of the major figures of the battle.

Review: I was especially curious to see it on initial theatrical release because of the casting of Martin Sheen as Lee; were I to cast a civil war movie, the name Martin Sheen would NEVER have entered my mind as an appropriate performer for this make-or-break role.
GETTYSBURG, based on Michael Shaara's bestseller, "The Killer Angels", is a truly remarkable film, in it's clear, if long, presentation of the Civil War's bloodiest, best-known, yet least understood battle, in it's 'humanizing' of the almost legendary characters of the period, and, most amazingly, for being filmed at the actual locations where the actions took place, in Gettysburg, itself.
It is a singular achievement, and Ted Turner deserves credit for making it happen.Two characters dominate the film; Jeff Daniels, in one of his finest performances, is a likable, totally believable Col. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, the Maine ex-schoolteacher who would win the Congressional Medal of Honor; and Tom Berenger, sporting a huge, bushy beard, is a sympathetic 'voice of reason' as Confederate Lt. Gen.
Robert Duvall, who assumed the role in GODS AND GENERALS, would be far more credible as Lee.The sheer numbers of the battle are staggering; over 150,000 combatants, with 53,000 dead, more in a single three-day engagement than were lost during the entire war in Vietnam.
The tactical errors (Lee's decision, on the third day of battle, to order Pickett's suicidal charge into the Union guns; Meade's decision, drawing the fury of President Lincoln, to allow the Southern survivors to return home without further slaughter, while a humane gesture, probably lengthening the war) are presented within the context of of the overall conflict, providing the viewer with justification for their decisions.Director Ronald F.
"Gods and Generals", "The Killer Angels", and "The Full Measure" are excellent reads for any war or history buff and I would strongly recommend them.The battle scenes are also very realistic.
Not the best, but a great representation of the epic battle of the Civil War. All I hear is people griping about how long this film is.
The point is it represents what is considered by historians to be the most important battle of the American Civil War.I will admit that the length of the film kinda takes away from it, but it is nonetheless good.
Chamberlain and the 20th Maine at Picket's Charge - in reality, they were being held in reserve near the Round Tops with the rest of the V Corps), this film is very realistic, using thousands of professional re-enactors to fight the battle scenes, which adds to it.Many battles and side notes were left out (eg.
The sweep and grandeur is helped by the superb cinematography (by Kees Van Oostrum) and great acting on the part of Tom Berenger (Longstreet), Martin Sheen (Lee), Jeff Daniels (Chamberlain), C.
Wonderful depiction of the events leading to a pivotal battle of the Civil War, the battle of Gettysburg, with a focus on 3 key individuals: Confederate General Robert E.
Lee (played brilliantly by Martin Sheen), Lee's second, Lt. General James Longstreet (Tom Berenger), and Union  Col Joshua Chamberlain (Jeff Daniels).Truly classic storytelling beautifully presented.
I don't consider myself ignorant as a rule, but to tell the truth I never envisioned that the battles were basically fought hand-to-hand, face-to-face, long lines of fighting men falling, almost randomly, on both sides.This movie, along with John Frankenheimer's "Andersonville" jump-started a serious interest for me in these historical docudramas, and the Civil War in particular.
People commonly refer to directions (from the norht, from the west, etc.) or "we must flank them to the right" and it's hard to understand if you haven't read about the battle.The scene with the runaway slave is too abbreviated from the book - it doesn't have much impact in the movie.
Any while its not gory you do get a sense of the hell of war.What can I say that hasn't been said already?The film works mostly because at its center its the story of Jeff Daniel's Joshua Chamberlain, a well educated man who goes off to do his duty even though he knows he may end up dead.
Its through Daniel's interaction with all the other characters that we come to understand what the war was about.Even if the odd facial hair makes you crazy, its a great film.
With a few notable exceptions Schindler's List, Braveheart, Saving Private Ryan and Glory, history based movies usually die quick and quiet in the movie theater (The Messenger, Ride with the Devil, Cobb) History flicks cost a bundle to make with the costumes and the challenge of finding a place to shoot that's nowhere near highways, bridges, and cities, and they don't always appeal to mass audiences.So it's not that often that really good historical film comes around.
Both Gettysburg and the Killer Angels, the book it was based on, were stuffed with historical inaccuracies, the grossest of all being the presence of the 20th Maine regiment anywhere near Pickett's charge (this happens in both the movie and the book).For all the lengthy soliloquies, historical misses, whitewashed violence, and the fact that only about 30% of the battle of Gettysburg is shown on film, Gettysburg remains as the best effort to capture the sprawling battle of July 1863 on film.
Kudos to the reenactors.Martin Sheen and Tom Beringer were they're usual excellent selves as Lee and Longstreet and for me, their ongoing debate of the strategy of Gettysburg helped make the movie.
Other highlights include the disenchantment of Union soldiers at this stage of the Civil War, and the personal trauma Richard Jordan's Lewis Armistead felt at having to fight his friend Winfield Hancock not only in the same war, but in the same sector of the same battle of that war.Much of Gettysburg has to be viewed with a grain of salt, but until a Stephen Speilberg or other directing genius with a knack for war footage comes along, it's one of the best we have.
From what I know of the Civil War the battle and command decisions were faithfully re-created with none of the banal sub-plots, ridiculous "love interests" and fictionalised scenes so beloved of Hollywood.
In order to give the movie's battle scenes an "epic" look, it needed several thousand extras and this film didn't have anyway near the budget to afford professional extras or travel overseas to rent-out a small European army as Hollywood films used do to.
It was either use the services of reenactors or no movie about the battle of Gettysburg was going to be made.While "Gettysburg" could not have been made without reenactors, I do feel director Ronald Maxwell could have done a better job of filming around some of the more ridiculous looking ones.
Looking over the grounds where Pickett's Charge took place I could hear the canon's thunder and the bullets flying by.This movie captures the essence of the battle and it has to be long in order to do so.
Actually, all the officers on both sides were portrayed fairly as nothing but good and brave men.Jeff Daniels, as Colonel Joshua Chamberlain, had the best role and came off looking the best.
Sheen portrays a Lee who is coming to terms with his hero status among his troops, but also shows him subtly uncomfortable with it.Also interesting was the constant hearkening back to the pre-war relationship between Union general Winfield Hancock (Brian Mallon) and Confederate General Lewis Armistead (Richard Jordan).
Hardly a classic soldier (he was a university professor of English and Religion back in Maine) Chamberlain displays a solid grasp of tactics, and comes across as the great Northern hero in this account of Gettysburg.So, there are a lot of good things in this movie.
Gettysburg is the best civil war movie I have ever had the privilege of watching.
Gettysburg is the greatest Civil War film ever made and one of the best war movies, period.
It has everything that a great movie should include, from excellent acting to riveting action, from beautiful cinematography to a stirring musical score.The acting in the film, especially by the three main characters Tom Berenger (Lt. Gen.
The supporting cast is no less great in their roles, which really carries the film.The battle scenes are some of the most stirring ever seen on film and my father still cannot watch the Pickett's Charge segment without tearing up.
I'm a history buff, and while my area of expertise is WW-II, I figured that I should watch this movie to find out more about the American Civil War (which I believe strongly contributed to the push for the Confederation of my country -- Canada -- in 1867).I should have watched "Glory" again rather than this pompous atrocity.
As a US History major (and fanatic) the movie is for the most part extremely historically accurate in terms of events in the battle, the portrayal of the generals, and the attitudes of the common soldiers.The  musical score by Randy Edelman is in my opinion extremely moving and spine-tingling, and I was sad to see that it didnt even win an oscar nomination (especially when you note that it has been re-used and played in other movies and commercials countless times).Other people who have seen this movies comment that they liked it, but they felt it was too long.
I initially guffawed at Sheen doing a southern accent, but overall he did a fine job as General Lee. Berenger was excellent as Longstreet, and certainly his reservations about a direct assault on the 3rd day are part of the record, and emphasized in this film.
Concerning PC I thought the speech by Jeff Daniels as Chamberlain was moving and one of the best scenes in the film however his sergeants comments about blacks was out of place and a little too much for 1863 !
I don't think its always necessary to have blood & guts all over the screen as in most current films depicting violence but I do believe that if ever graphic violence was necessary to convey a historical event it was needed most notably during Pickett's charge in which bodies were ripped to shreds by the massive fire that was inflicted upon them and was part of the great tragedy and horror of the Civil War.
I liked all of the performances of the small star cast in the film even Martin Sheen as Lee " I'm not sure why his performance was criticized so much " my favorites were Jeff Daniels and Tom Berenger  with the only exception being Sam Elliott a perennial TNT movie star who was annoying with his over-acting.
On the plus side was the very fine score and for a 4+ hour film it flew by and had many moving scenes one of them was the rousing cheer of Lee's men as he came to greet them prior to the climactic battle and two great scenes involving Chamberlain " his speech early on and leading his ammunition depleted men on a desperate bayonet charge" .
I also have to admit I watch this film every time its on Turner and my appreciation grows for it with every viewing and the shortcomings I mentioned bothered me initially but not in my repeated viewing and considering the extreme rarity of Civil War epics I now would highly recommend seeing Gettysburg..
As a final point (I'm trying to be quick, I can go on), Hancock's line of "There are times when a corps commander's life does not count" was something the real Hancock was quoted as saying during the actual battle; it was not made up Hollywood fluff as you'd like to believe.John's comments are both fiery and exaggerated, and while I respect his opinion on whether he liked or didn't like the film, I believe he basically sat down expecting a 4 hour and 8 minute truth-telling history lesson without extensive knowledge of the battle in the first place (this is not meant to be a personal attack, how many of us really do have such a knowledge?) or a well-enough understanding of Michael Shaara's novel on which the film was based on, almost more so than the battle itself..
A wonderful film, exceptionally superior work by Tom Berenger, Martin Sheen, Jeff Daniels and Sam Elliott.
Then again, when was the last time people like Tom Berenger, Martin Sheen, Jeff Daniels or Stephen Lang give a good dramatic performance?(3) The music was another element that made the film seem like one big cliché, with big dramatic `hero-scores' playing every time one of the 'heroes' rode his horse to the top of a mountain, looking all profound and about to head into another speech-like monologue.I can understand why Americans must like this film, because it would undoubtedly feed into their nationalist beliefs about how wonderful their nation is, and deftly paints a picture of each of these people involved in the conflict the way Americans probably want to remember them.
Some are nit-picky, obviously from hard-core Civil War reenactor types:-"The collars on the uniforms of the 20 th Maine soldiers are about 1/4 inch longer than they actually were."-"Tom Chamberlain's mustache is certainly a fake; it would have appeared greasier in the hot July sun."-"The 5th Regiment actually was two blocks away from where they are depicted in the movie."Some gripes get downright ridiculous, obviously from psychotic loons who think it's still 18 friggin 63...-"The man portraying Gen. Lee is obviously a modern-day actor who closely resembles Martin Sheen..."-"The rifles are actually firing blanks, not real Minie balls."-"The actual battle lasted three days, not a mere four hours, as the director apparently believed."-"There's no way anyone actually filmed the battle of Gettysburg, so this movie is undoubtedly a bunch of reenactors merely imita...."SHUT UP!!!
GETTYSBURG was made to cater to Civil War fans only, as well as history buffs - not a wide movie-going audience.
Just remember, GETTYSBURG, with the exception of GODS AND GENERALS, will probably be the last Civil War movie made.
I new little of the battle at Gettysburg, but after watching the movie I just had to know more.
Ordinary men rise above to accomplish great triumphs.You can not choose a side as both views are shown and both the North and South are shown to be doing what is believed to be just cause.This movie brings you right into the battle with the support of thousands of civil war reenactors..
Gettysburg is without doubt the best war movie of all time, and I have thought so since its release in Australia in 1993.
Based on Michael Shaara's great novel "The Killer Angels", this is one of the most impressive movies about the American Civil War that I've ever seen.
Lee, portraying him as a gentleman, a warrior, and a patriot to his cause.The reason this film is so powerful is that it doesn't take sides, as some Civil War movies tend to do.
The Battle Of Gettysburg in the American Civil War was a monster fight over the course of three days leaving in its wake approximately 50,000 casualties.
Director Ronald Maxwell never could direct actors very well, a deficiency that continued into this movie's later prequel 'Gods and Generals'.The thing Maxwell does best is staging period battle recreations; the location cinematography is excellent and this pulls the viewer back into the moment very quickly any time the action starts up, however much the stagy theatrics might have earlier distracted..
I will state now that I'm not familiar with the history of the American Civil War, but from what I've read, this movie faithfully re-creates the battle.
While they don't have the intensity of say Saving Private Ryan, they work brilliantly.The script, written by Maxwell and based on the book The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara, gives the actors plenty of good material to work with, and the cast, led by Jeff Daniels, Tom Berenger, Martin Sheen and Stephen Lang are all wonderful.
Gettysburg is the best Civil War movie out there.
It replays one of the most important battles in the Civil War(Gettysburg) The movie takes you through every critical event that happened during the three days of the intense battle.
The battle strategies alone are enough (not even to mention Jeff Daniels' Oscar worthy portrayal as Col Joshua Chamberlain) if you care at all about history, the Civil War, or the major events that this country has gone through.The music is excellent, although a bit repetitive, the cast believable (with the possible exception of Martin Sheen, who seems overly detached as Lee), and the historical accuracy of the events depicted all make this a film that can be defended and/or admired.
One final point about the battle scenes of the film is that this movie was made before the computer graphics of today's war movies were perfected.
This makes the scenes all the more realistic and impressive.Gettysburg is a terrific film about the most important battle of the American Civil War. It should be seen not only by history buffs but all Americans as well.
(Possible Spoilers)Don't get me wrong I liked the film but Gettysburg left out way to much of the battle for a great war movie.
As a student (it is officially my college major and area of interest) of the Civil War, I enjoy this movie for it's scenery (It was actually filmed on the battlefield); it's superb characterizations: Jeff Daniels as Chamberlain, Tom Berenger as Longstreet, Stephen Lang as Pickett, Sam Eliot as the unsung hero of the battle, John Buford, and a heart-rending performance by Richard Jordan as 'Low Armistead.
The Acting is very good with excellent performances by Berenger, Daniels and Sam Elliott.The battle scenes are some of the best on film giving the full feel of a large scale battle which a lot of movies struggle with.A bit long for the average movie goer but it does help if you are interested in the period (American Civil War) and/or have read the book(s).