If this three hours-plus Civil War epic is any indication, the Union and the Confederate armies must have talked each other to death. Ronald F. Maxwell's Gods and Generals has, at most, five scattered minutes of story addressing the political issues that split the nation in 1861, maybe 30 minutes of battle scenes, and another 15 focused exclusively on Gen. Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson's pneumonia. The balance of the picture is spent on florid speeches, polemic pontifications, and protracted prayers; extensively detailed attack plans of three specific battles; scene after scene exploring the marriages of its military icons; and passing mentions of slavery (which apparently no one in this Southern army actually favored), while largely ignoring the other more direct causes of the war. Stage actor Stephen Lang gives a powerhouse performance as Jackson--and it's he alone that counteracts the sleeping-pill character of this seemingly endless film. Not a necessary purchase. [Note: DVD extras include a three-minute intro by executive producer Ted Turner, sectional audio commentary (by writer-director-producer Ronald Maxwell, director of Virginia Military Institute Museum Operations Keith Gibson, and Virginia Tech professor James “Bud” Robinson), a 22-minute “Journey to the Past” production featurette, “The Authenticities of Film” 13-minute featurette, the 14-minute “The Life of Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson” featurette, the music videos “Cross the Green Mountain” by Bob Dylan and “Going Home” by Mary Fahl, a brief “Visit Virginia” travel promo, a trailer, and DVD-ROM features. Bottom line: an impressive extras package for a cinematic windbag of a film.] (R. Blackwelder)
Gods and Generals
Warner, 229 min., PG-13, VHS: $22.99, 2 videocassettes; DVD: $27.98, July 15 Volume 18, Issue 4
Gods and Generals
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