Gettysburg / Gods and Generals

No need for spoilers here - anyone who has studied US history knows how things turned out. What is missing, though,are the nuances and the deeper examination of the personalities. Sure, history majors are immersed in such things, but most of us learned what we needed to, added regional biases and moved on.It's the regional biases that are embedded in the two films that comprise this set. There are subliminal artifacts that favor the southern views. What makes them subliminal are the context, music, and even the focus. The northern focus is almost matter of fact; the southern delved in honor and the whole lost cause narrative. As you watch the two movies be aware of the shift in perception depending on if the scene is northern or southern. Subliminal stuff aside, the films are true to historical events, including the northern lights display, Moss Neck Manor and the Corbin family and the character studies of the main historical figures. And the outcomes, of course.Some interesting facts include Gettysburg being filmed first and Gods and Generals follow. Historical chronology is inverted in the actual production, but each captures the period portrayed. I think that Robert Duval's portrayal of Lee is perfect for the earlier period. He comes across as fresh and bound by his own code of honor. In the Gettysburg file Lee is played by Martin Sheen who perfectly displays Lee's weariness and even loss of tempter at J.E.B. Stuart. Stephen Lang stands out as performing a very credible General Stonewall Jackson in Gods and Generals, and then performing as General Picket in Gettysburg. He is one of the actors that I truly admire for his ability to not only get totally in character, but to assume the character's physical and personal identities. Ted Turner made uncredited appearances in both films, but the real interesting walk-ons were actual US congressmen who played roles. I am not going to cite them, but if you do a little research you will get a fairly long list of names.While there is a subtle bias in the two films, they are quite real. I grew up in Caroline County with relatives in Spottsylvania County (Virginia), so am very familiar with the places in Gods and Generals. Indeed, there were still some veterans alive from both sides when I was born in VA in 1948. That gives me an insight into some of the events and places, even if by word of mouth, and that film certainly captured the place and time. I have also visited Gettysburg, and while I do not have the same ties to the area, I could feel the weight of those events depicted in that film. I did research the main players and will say that Jeff Daniels did a remarkably job of portraying Chamberlain.

Dos monumentales films sobre la Guerra de Secesiòn en USA, tratadas de modo impresionante, por su crudo realismo. Ambas estàn muy bien ejecutadas, sin ahorrar ningùn detalle para hacerlas creìbles, como es la realidad real."Dioses y generales se refiere", màs bien, a la vida del gran general de la Confederaciòn, Stonewall Jackson, quien siempre fue un baluarte de las tropas confederadas, por su conocimiento de estrategia y tàcticas bèlicas."Gettysburg", aùn màs majestuosa que la anterior, muestra la batalla del mismo nombre, que de alguna manera decidiò el resultado de la Guerra Civil norteamericana. La cinta, en sì, se refiere a toda la batalla que tuvo lugar en la planicie de Gettysburg y, a pesar de su longitud, capta la atenciòn del espectador desde los mismos prolegòmenos de dicho enfrentamiento. Cabe destacar, en primer tèrmino, la porfìa y excesivo orgullo del General confederado Lee, que, de algùn modo lo hizo errar en la lectura de la refriega y lo condenò a la derrota, porque ademàs pensaba que sus hombres eran invencibles y èstos, a su vez, creìan que Lee no podìa ser vencido por nadie. Dos crasos errores.Por otra parte, los "caballeros" de la Confederaciòn asumieron la guerra casi como un ejercicio para ir a lucirse ante sus damas y rivales, sin considerar el pragmatismo de la gente del Norte, que sì tomò en serio la Guerra y se preocupò de toda la logìstica necesaria para mantenerla y ganarla.Ciertamente, son dos cintas imperdibles, que ademàs de ser muy entretenidas, ayudan a conocer la Historia del gran paìs del Norte. Ademàs, como una sugerencia, es deseable ver el film "Lo que el viento se llevò", ya que en dicho film se muestra el entorno previo a la Guerra, lo que ayuda a comprender mejor la actitud de los contendientes, dado sus costumbres y tradiciones.

Gettysburg is based on the book "Killer Angels", which is recommended reading for Marine and U.S. Army officers. Both the book and the movie are riveting. I believe that this battle shows clearly that Lee was much better at managing a defense and/or withdrawl, than he was at conducting an offensive campaign. Had Union General Techumusa Sherman been in Lee's shoes, I doubt that the second and third day battles would not have been fought. In the movie, General Longstreet pleads with General Lee on the second and third days to avoid attacking the high ground but instead to maneuver into a position that would require the Union to attack them instead. Lee did not feel well at Gettysburg, and that may have affected his judgement. In the movie, Lee does look tired and inattentive to what Longstreet is trying to convey. Col Chamberlain's heroic stand on Little Round Top was the best part of the movie.Unfortunately, Gods and Generals has way, way too much character development and not enough action. Similarly, important campaigns such as Antietem and the Shenandoah Valley were left out, which were important to the development of the Stonewall Jackson legend.Stephen Lang (Avatar's Colonel Miles Quaritch) gives a great acting performance as General George Pickett in Gettysburg and General Stonewall Jackson in Gods and Generals. Jeff Daniels also does a masterful job in both movies as Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.Gettysburg is clealy 5 stars if you are a Civil War history buff.Gods and Generals is 3 stars.Since this set contains both 'Gettysburg' and 'Gods and Generals', I give this four stars.

Disclaimer: I have not yet watched Gods and Generals so I can't say what that DVD is like, but I have watched Gettysberg so I shall review that one. When I do watch it I would go back and edit my review, and add my thoughts.It is very true to the book, "The killer angels" by Michael Shaara. it is basically verbatim, but there are some things that are changed here and there. I personally liked the movie more. Its in moving form obviously, so its more vivid. Its pretty violent, as one can imagine.Its VERY long! Over four hours, but its good none the less.The actors are superb! Jeff Daniels as Colonel Joshua Lawrence chamberlain is amazing, and C. Thomas Howell as Tom Chamberlain as amazing as well. The relationship between the two brothers is heartwarming to watch. Martin Sheen is very good as Robert E. Lee, but not as good as would have hoped. Tom Berenger was good as Longstreet and Longstreet is one of my favorite characters in the whole story. Picket (Stephan lang) is comic relief until the end, when Lee asks him to resemble his division and to fight again. Picket has lost 60% of his men and he tells lee, "Sir, I have no division." Buster Kilrain is wonderful as well, and I must have flooded my house with tears when he dies.Men would love it, but for emotional women, keep a box of tissues nearby.It is historically accurate, to the best of my knowledge. if your watching this movie just for fun, beware that you will have a new interest about the battle of Gettysburg and the civil war. For history lovers, this is right up your ally I would say. Most of it was filmed on the actual battlefields, and I think that adds a nice touch.One very important thing that jumped out at me was the death. Thousands of men died for the america we have today, and I believe that that brings a new awareness and appreciation to our land, as well as memorial day.

non visualizzabile con un normale DVD. solo sul disco (quindi bisogna averlo in mano) riporta REGION 1. seppure non tanto esperto capisco che è una modalità inconsueta rispetto ai normali DVD nostrani (forse è consueta per gli USA). però quella informazione NON è riportata sull'offerta, contrariamente ad altri articoli concorrenti che invece lo scrivono (così che ho potuto evitarli). stante il basso costo non non sprecherò il mio tempo a restituire. da evitare.

This set comes with 4 discs on a single post. Gettysburg is not labeled 1and 2 but were on the post that way. Gettysburg is over 4 hours but is an excellent movie. Keeps your attention. Gods and Generals follows Thomas ‘Stonewall’ Jackson from the beginning of the war to just before Gettysburg. The picture and sound quality are good. Order came on time. Great set for the price.

Ich habe bereits eine DVD von den Filmen vor ein paar Jahren in Deutsch gekauft. Die DVD's sind inzwischen leider schon sehr verkratzt und man kann sie kaum noch anschauen, da es ständig ruckelt. Also habe ich die DVD's hier neu gekauft. Leider war nicht definiert, welche Sprachen auswählbar sind und so habe ich nach der Lieferung herausfinden müssen, dass im Menü nur Englisch auswählbar ist. Schade.

Es war schon länger ein Wunsch diese beiden Filme auf DVD zu kaufen. Die Steelbox war eine sehr gute Gelegenheit. Da ich auch Fachliteratur zum Civil War besitze sind die beiden DVD`s eine super Ergänzung. Sehr empfehlenswert.