Gettysburg (1993)

Director: Ronald F. Maxwell (Ron Maxwell)

Writers: Michael Shaara (novel), Ron Maxwell (screenplay)

Stars: Tom Berenger, Martin Sheen, Stephen Lang

Production Co.: Tristar Television, Esparza / Katz Productions, New Line Cinema, Turner Pictures


Speeches! This four-hour-film is full of speeches. Even when they say that they are not trying to preach, they actually preach. There are infinite ways of delivering speeches in a film, but the director presents them by mere shot / reverse shot editing. "I don't believe a man should be judged by what his father deserves... I fight for justice."; you are obliged to hear such typical quotes with big close-ups presenting heads of characters. I understand they are setting emotional ground for climax, but such boredoms are posited too often between sensational sequences.

     What helps to overcome such boredom are the music and battle sequences. Their battle is primitive. Though they were living in an era of industrial revolution, soldiers of the Civil War helplessly marched against well-armed enemy lines because they inevitably chose line battle due to poor accuracy of firearms and long reloading time. Thus the characters in this movie do the same thing as well as characters in other films like The Patriot (2000) or Barry Lyndon (1975). However, this film's battle sequences do not look dull because of two points. First, the film shows the soldiers' constant redeployment to attack/defend flank. It reveals rapid movements were still needed in the era of musket whereas that does not mean they could not avoid marching directly and slowly ahead enemy guns. In other words, the film does not downgrade the battle as a mere repetition of shoot-and-walk. It presents relentless efforts of privates and generals by introducing the overall situation of the battle.

     Secondly, the director consistently shows anonymous soldiers by frequent use of tracking shots. A number of shots show unnamed individuals who participated in the war, and it invokes that the war is not a simple political game of aristocrats or generals but a historical moment that involves common people. During exchange of fires, the director shows falling soldiers for a long period of time. Honestly, that is an excessive choice. He just could shorten the long takes. However, since the director made such a long story - 2 hours for the Northerners, 2 hours for the Southerners - it may be pointless to complain the film's timidity.

     Martin Sheen's performance is matchless. In fact, his Robert Lee is not a typical, authoritative general. However, from beneath his softness, Sheen directly and indirectly reveals Lee's inner conflict as a general who determines the lives of his men, and as a human.