Review of Gettysburg (1993) by Adam Z — 05 Apr 2011

One of the greatest war movies ever made and the best Civil War film ever made second only to "Glory". The sweeping drama of this four hour epic shows both sides of the conflict through the lives and personalities of the generals and soldiers who fought and died on those first three days of July, 1863.

Some of the acting can come off as a little hammy at times, but overall, the case including Martin Sheen, Jeff Daniels, Tom Berenger, and Stephen Lang showcase some excellent performances. The late Richard Jordan pulls off a beautiful and heartfelt portrayal of General Armistead, the Rebel leader who courageously fell during the third day of the battle.

You can certainly tell the filmmakers went the extra mile to oversee that every detail in the uniforms and equipment was authentic. The grand climax of the motion picture is the bloodbath that was Pickett's Charge as thousands of Confederate troops were essentially slaughtered as they advanced across an open field to the Union line.

To be perfectly honest, as a Civil War aficianado, I might have seen this motion picture more than 40 times, the first time on opening day in 1993. If you have a passion for that dark time in American history, I totally recommend you watch this film.