Gettysburg (1993)

In 1863, the Northern and Southern forces fight at Gettysburg in the decisive battle of the American Civil War.

Director:

Ronald F. Maxwell

Writers:

Michael Shaara (novel), Ronald F. Maxwell (screenplay)

Stars:

Tom Berenger, Martin Sheen, Stephen Lang

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tom Berenger	...	Lt. Gen. James Longstreet
Martin Sheen	...	Gen. Robert E. Lee
Stephen Lang	...	Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett
Richard Jordan	...	Brig. Gen. Lewis A. Armistead
Andrew Prine	...	Brig. Gen. Richard B. Garnett
Cooper Huckabee	...	Henry T. Harrison
Patrick Gorman	...	Maj. Gen. John Bell Hood
Bo Brinkman	...	Maj. Walter H. Taylor
James Lancaster	...	Lt. Col. Arthur Fremantle
William Morgan Sheppard	...	Maj. Gen. Isaac R. Trimble / Narrator (as Morgan Sheppard)
Kieran Mulroney	...	Maj. G. Moxley Sorrel
James Patrick Stuart	...	Col. E. Porter Alexander (as Patrick Stuart)
Tim Ruddy	...	Maj. Charles Marshall
Royce D. Applegate	...	Brig. Gen. James L. Kemper
Ivan Kane	...	Cap. Thomas J. Goree

Storyline

The four and 1/4 hour depiction of the historical and personal events surrounding and including the decisive American civil war battle features thousands of civil war re-enactors marching over the exact ground that the federal army and the army of North Virginia fought on. The defense of the Little Round Top and Pickett's Charge are highlighted in the actual three day battle which is surrounded by the speeches of the commanding officers and the personal reflections of the fighting men. Based upon the novel 'The Killer Angels'.

---

Plot Keywords:

battle | american civil war | civil war | stone wall | major | 

---

Taglines:

Fate made them soldiers. Courage made them heroes.

---

Genres:

Drama | History | War

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for language and epic battle scenes

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 October 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Killer Angels

Filming Locations:

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$10,769,960 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

TriStar Television, Esparza / Katz Productions, Turner Pictures (I)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

271 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby SR (35 mm prints) DTS (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is not the first war picture for either Martin Sheen or Tom Berenger. They have both appeared in films about the Vietnam War. Sheen appeared in Apocalypse Now, opposite Robert Duvall, who went on to replace him as Lee in Gods and Generals. Berenger appeared in Platoon, opposite Martin's son, Charlie Sheen.

---

Goofs

General Longstreet's shifting beard.

---

Quotes

Sergeant 'Buster' Kilrain: Some of them, they load and load, they never fire. They just keep right on loading. Some of them come home with seven, eight bullets rammed up in the barrel, never fired a shot.

---

Connections

Followed by Gods and Generals (2003)

---

Soundtracks

"Kathleen Mavourneen"
(uncredited)
Music by F. Crouch and lyrics by Francis Marion Crawford
Sung outside Longstreet's tent

User Reviews

No Civil War Buff, But I Still Enjoyed It

At four hours-plus, this is one of the longest movies I own but is well-made and worth owning, and I'm not a "Civil War buff," either. I would probably appreciate this movie even more if I did know more about that horrible conflict. Being familiar with all the small towns surrounding Gettsyburg wouldn't hurt.

The movie is well-acted, nicely filmed and has some memorable scenes. My only complaints are that some of the action scenes go on too long and I didn't appreciate the plug for Darwin's evolutionary theories, which had no place in this film. However, this is a Turner Pictures film and the "Turner" is outspoken atheist Ted Turner, it's no surprise we get this thrown in our faces.

Otherwise, they stuck to the war story. It was interesting how they portrayed Robert E. Lee. They make him look a little stupid in his strategy but also gave him a compassionate look, and you couldn't help but feel sorry for the man. Actually, all the officers on both sides were portrayed fairly as nothing but good and brave men.

Jeff Daniels, as Colonel Joshua Chamberlain, had the best role and came off looking the best. It may be Daniels' best work ever, too. Martin Sheen was outstanding as Lee. Kudos to Tom Berenger (Lt. Gen. James Longstreet) and Richard Jordan (Brig. Gen. Lewis Armistead) for their performances, too.

It's a quality show, filmed on the Gettysburg sites, too. Although there are a few long fight scenes, this is not a bloody film. Language-wise, this probably holds the record for the most usage of the word "damn" but that's it, profanity-wise.

I wouldn't let the length of this movie prohibit you from watching it. You can always break it up into segments over a couple of days.