One of the most marvelous inventions of the technical revolution is the DVD. Yes, the high quality of the picture is a definite plus. The choice of screens delights the hard-core remote control addict. The choice of subtitles or a different language satisfies those craving a cultural experience while only spending the cost of a movie rental instead of an expensive trip to an out of town art house theater . The scene selection allows the obsessive to view the same chapter of the a movie over and over without the messy fast forward of a VHS. However, the best special feature of the DVD is the commentaries by the director and other experts. Hearing the vision of the movie and additional narrative tracks by historians persuades the viewer to change opinions about a movie which had been deemed less than adequate strictly on footage which made it to the screen.
The case in point is Gods and Generals.
Gods and Generals is the prequel to The Killer Angels the novel upon which the movie Gettysburg was based. It is the second of a trilogy of Civil War films produced by Ted Turner Pictures. The third, yet-to-be made, is entitled The Last Full Measure. The reprising of all the roles in G&G is in itself a historical wonder or at least some good questions for a game show. Jeff Shaara, son of Michael Sharra, wrote the novel upon which the movie is based. Michael Sharra wrote the book The Killer Angels. Ron Maxwell returns as director both of the movies. .Jeff Daniels and C. Thomas Howell return as Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and his brother Tom respectively. Stephen Lang plays Stonewall Jackson in this movie having played General Pickett in Gettysburg.
The four hour film depicts the life of Stonewall Jackson, starting with the secession of Virginia, progressing through three battles of the war, First Bull Run, Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, and ultimately his death from wounds suffered from the accidental shooting by his own troops at Chancellorsville. Stephen Lang does a decent job of playing Stonewall. Yet, to most Civil War buffs, this version of Jackson is not the one expected in this epic. The legend of Stonewall Jackson leaves the impression of a brilliant, eccentric, and austere general possessing a genius for military tactics who drove his men to the breaking point. The character that comes across in this movie is somewhat of gentle giant whose manner of speech seems to have come from the King James version of the Bible.
This tended to make the first viewing of this film one big fidget between the battles. The DVD director’s commentary does make a profound difference on the rating of this movie. Along with Ron Maxwell’s narrative, the commentaries by Keith Gibson, director of the Virginia Military Museum and James Robertson of Virginia Tech, beguile the viewer into a profound appreciation of the accuracy of detail in each frame of this movie.
For example, the secession speech given by John Jennings on the floor of the Virginia Senate is verbatim from the record. Astute authenticity of detail is noted by Maxwell, Gibson, and Robertson in costumes, buildings, sets, and modes of transportation, and troop movements. In one of the opening scenes in Jackson’s classroom at VMI, the lecture on the chalk board on the use of artillery, is from Jackson’s textbook. The division of families is subtly portrayed in the scene with Jackson talking to his former father-in-law, Dr. Junkins. Jackson’s first wife had died but the two men had remained close. Junkins is informing Jackson he is leaving Virginia and going back to Pennsylvania for he will not stay in a place where students dishonor the flag. In truth, Junkins’ grandson was one of the students removing the Union flag from the pole at VMI on that day.
To a history buff, these juicy little details gleaned only from the special features section of the DVD motivates the viewer to watch G&G again with a different paradigm than the standard movie watching mode.
If you haven’t updated to a DVD, three particular chapters of G&G stand on their own merit without the benefit of the special features of the DVD. First, not in sequential order, is the scene of Jackson’s men creeping through the woods of Virginia to surprise the XIth. This scene rivets the viewer for it captures the chaos and desperation of a battle from this era. When Jackson’s men step out of the woods, in a line as long as the eye can see and descend upon the sleeping and relaxed XIth Corps, the hairs on the back of your neck truly raise. The XIth has taken a lot of criticism over the years for being asleep at the wheel. However, the movie shows men of the XIth attempting to form battle line after battle line and being over run by sheer number.
Second, Jeff Daniels’ speech to his brother concerning the paradoxical stance of the South to fight to the death for state’s rights while coercing a race into slavery is stellar. Last, the performance of Robert Duvall as Robert E. Lee because, well, he is Robert Duvall and that alone is worth the price of the ticket, rental, or purchase at Wal-Mart.
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© Copyright 2004 by David W. Tschanz.
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