Gettysburg (1993)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Director:

Ronald F. Maxwell

Writers (WGA):

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

Release Date:

8 October 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | War

Tagline:

Same Land. Same God. Different Dreams.

Plot:

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

Plot Keywords:

Battle | American Civil War | Gettysburg | Lieutenant General | Reference To Hamlet

Cast

Tom Berenger	...	Lt. Gen. James Longstreet
Martin Sheen	...	Gen. Robert E. Lee
Stephen Lang	...	Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett
Jeff Daniels	...	Col. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
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
Kieran Mulroney	...	Maj. G. Moxley Sorrel
James Patrick Stuart	...	Col. E. Porter Alexander
Tim Ruddy	...	Maj. Charles Marshall
Royce D. Applegate	...	Brig. Gen. James L. Kemper
Ivan Kane	...	Cap. Thomas J. Goree
Warren Burton	...	Maj. Gen. Henry Heth
MacIntyre Dixon	...	Maj. Gen. Jubal A. Early
Joseph Fuqua	...	Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart
Timothy Scott	...	Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell (as Tim Scott)
George Lazenby	...	Brig. Gen. J. Johnston Pettigrew
Alex Harvey	...	Maj. Hawkins
Charles Lester Kinsolving	...	Brig. Gen. Willilam Barksdale
Ted Kozlosky	...	Confederate Lieutenant
Henry Atterbury	...	Lee's Aide
Graham Winton	...	Maj. Gen. Robert E. Rodes
Curtis Bradford	...	Another Officer
Daniel Chamblin	...	Confederate Officer
Patrick Falci	...	Lt. Gen. Ambose Powell Hill
Greg Ginther	...	Rodes' Courier
George Heffner	...	Another Officer
Tom Landon	...	Texas Soldier #2
Trent Walker	...	Rebel Prisoner (as Michael Tennessee Lee)
Rick Leisenring	...	Confederate Voice
Steve Leone	...	An Officer
Tom Mays	...	Early's Courier
Frank McGurgan	...	Old Sergeant
Peter Miller	...	Pender's Courier
Arnold Nisley	...	Sergeant
Ted Rebich	...	Dr. Cullen
Curtis Utz	...	Texas Soldier #1
C. George Werner	...	Another Officer
Joe Ayer	...	Banjo and Guitar Player
Eric Ayer	...	Banjo and Guitar Player
Sam Elliott	...	Brig. Gen. John Buford
C. Thomas Howell	...	Lt. Thomas D. Chamberlain
Kevin Conway	...	Sgt. 'Buster' Kilrain
Brian Mallon	...	Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock
Buck Taylor	...	Col. William Gamble
John Diehl	...	Pvt. Bucklin
Joshua D. Maurer	...	Col. James C. Rice (as Josh Mauer)
John Rothman	...	Maj. Gen. John F. Reynolds
Richard Anderson	...	Maj. Gen. George G. Meade
Bill Campbell	...	Lt. Pitzer
David Carpenter	...	Col. Thomas C. Devin
Maxwell Caulfield	...	Col. Strong Vincent
Donal Logue	...	Capt. Ellis Spear
Dwier Brown	...	Capt. Brewer
Herb Mitchell	...	Sgt. Andrew J. Tozier
Emile O. Schmidt	...	Brig. Gen. John Gibbon
Daniel Baumann	...	Private #2
Ken Burns	...	Hancock's Aide
Michael Callahan	...	Bearded Man
Scott Allan Campbell	...	Capt. Atherton W. Clark
David C. Cole	...	Buford's Aide
Mark Z. Danielewski	...	Private
Brian James Egen	...	Cocky Lieutenant
David Fiske	...	Courier
John Fitzpatrick	...	Old 2nd Maine Man
Vee Gentile	...	Private
Gary Gilmore	...	Union Rider (Voice #1)
John Hadfield	...	Vincent's Courier
John Heffron	...	Sgt. Charles H. Veil
Conn Horgan	...	Officer #1
Richard Kiester	...	Devin's Aide
Matt Letscher	...	Young 2nd Maine Man
Robert Lucas	...	Guard, 118th Pennsylvania
Reid MacLean	...	Pvt. Jim Merrill
Jonathan Maxwell	...	Pvt. Bill Merrill
Barry McEvoy	...	2nd Maine Soldier
Scott Mehaffey	...	Lieutenant, Buford's Staff
Mark Moses	...	Sgt. Owen
Russel Starlin	...	Officer #2
Leonard Termo	...	Cpl. George F. Estabrook
Frank Moseley	...	Soldier #1 20th Maine
Brian Resh	...	Soldier #2 20th Maine
Lawrence Sangi	...	Soldier #3 20th Maine
Michael Phillips	...	Soldier #4 20th Maine
Adam Brandy	...	Soldier #5 20th Maine
Sandy Mitchell	...	Fiddle and Guitar Player
John Durant	...	Fiddle and Guitar Player
Olivia Maxwell	...	Taneytown Girl
Darryl Wharton	...	Escaped Slave
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Thomas Fife	...	2nd Maine Man (as Tom Fife)
Kevin Hershberger	...	Confederate Soldier
Robert Lee Hodge	...	Confederate soldier
Kenneth Kochien	...	Union Soldier
J. Alec Holmes	...	Confederate Soldier (uncredited)
Jay Lance	...	Confederate Soldier (uncredited)
Brian Pohanka	...	Brig. Gen. Alexander Stewart Webb (uncredited)
Ken DeSoto Ramoz	...	Confederate Soldier (uncredited)
Ted Turner	...	Col. Waller T. Patton (uncredited)

Directed by
Ronald F. Maxwell

Writing credits (WGA)
Michael Shaara		(novel "The Killer Angels")
Ronald F. Maxwell		(screenplay)

Produced by
Moctesuma Esparza	....	producer
Robert Katz	....	producer
Nick Lombardo	....	co-producer
Sandy Martin	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Randy Edelman

Cinematography by
Kees Van Oostrum

Film Editing by
Corky Ehlers

Casting by
Joy Todd

Production Design by
Cary White

Art Direction by
Michael J. Sullivan		(as Mike Sullivan)

Set Decoration by
Barbara Haberecht		(as Barbara Haberacht)

Costume Design by
Michael T. Boyd

Makeup Department
Allan A. Apone	....	makeup supervisor (as Allan Apone)
Adam Brandy	....	makeup artist
Hala Iqal	....	hair stylist
Katherine Rees	....	hair stylist
Mark Sisson	....	makeup artist
Michael Spatola	....	key makeup artist
Gunnar Swanson	....	key hair stylist
Scott Taylor	....	makeup artist: second unit

Production Management
Graham Ford	....	unit production manager
Cal Naylor	....	unit manager
Alicia Rivera Frankl	....	executive in charge of production (as Alicia Rivera Alon)
Zach Staenberg	....	post-production supervisor
James Wilberger	....	executive in charge of production

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Steve Boyum	....	second unit director (as Steve M. Boyum)
Karen Estelle Collins	....	second assistant director (as Karen Collins)
Skip Cosper	....	first assistant director
Jeff Kay	....	additional second assistant director
Chemen Ochoa	....	key additional second assistant director
Kaaren F. Ochoa	....	first assistant director: second unit
Jay Smith	....	second assistant director
Richard 'Dub' Wright	....	additional second assistant director (as Richard Wright)

Art Department
James D. Boyd	....	props: second unit
Rodney Brown	....	construction foreman
Tim Carr	....	set dresser
Tonatiuh Esparza	....	set dresser
Kelly Farrah	....	property master
Dr. Ray Giron	....	assistant property master
John Lindsey McCormick	....	art department coordinator
Tommy McCutcheon	....	set dresser
Michael Peal	....	storyboard artist
Stephen Rinehart	....	painter (as Steve Rinehart)
Bot Roda	....	storyboard artist
Michael Sabo	....	set dresser
Jeff Schwan	....	lead man
Stephen G. Shifflette	....	set dresser
Gregory H. Starbuck	....	prop assistant: second unit
Brian Steblinski	....	set dresser
Jack Steblinski	....	third assistant props (as John 'Ski' Steblinski)
Peter Terry	....	props gunpowder assistant: second unit
Joseph E. Valley Jr.	....	swing gang set dresser
Jerry Vaughn	....	property assistant
Ed Vega	....	scenic artist
Hap Weaver	....	on-set dresser
David Wilt	....	construction coordinator (as Dave Wilt)

Sound Department
Jane Cameron	....	sound post coordinator: Signet
Richard Corwin	....	adr editor
Richard Corwin	....	dialogue editor
Richard F.W. Davis	....	assistant sound editor (as Richard Davis)
Stuart Deutsch	....	sound mixer: second unit
Gabrielle Gilbert Reeves	....	assistant dialogue editor (as Gabrielle Reeves)
Tom Gonta	....	foley mixer
Peter Halbert	....	boom operator
Stephen Halbert	....	sound mixer
Catherine Harper	....	foley walker
J. Stanley Johnston	....	sound re-recording mixer
J. Stanley Johnston	....	supervising sound editor
Ossama Khuluki	....	foley walker
Thomas Kost	....	cable person
Gerry Lentz	....	sound re-recording mixer
Ernesto Mas	....	adr editor
Tanya McGinnis-Potvin	....	assistant sound engineer
Bruce Nazarian	....	supervising sound editor
Kelly Neese	....	boom operator: second unit
Mark Peterson	....	assistant dialogue editor
Christopher B. Reeves	....	adr editor (as Chris Reeves)
Christopher B. Reeves	....	dialogue editor (as Chris Reeves)
Scott Sanders	....	sound effects editor
Steve F.B. Smith	....	stereo sound consultant: Dolby
Robert Troy	....	assistant sound editor
Everett Williams	....	assistant dialogue editor
Scott Wolf	....	senior sound effects editor

Special Effects by
Hank Atterbury	....	special effects assistant
Kelly Beadling	....	special effects assistant
Taylor Black	....	special effects
Joel P. Blanchard	....	special effects foreman
Bonnie Burnham	....	special effects
Thomas Fife	....	special effects assistant (as Thomas W. Fife)
Peter Gerber	....	special effects assistant (as Peter H. Gerber)
Sherri Holland	....	special effects assistant
Richard Huggins	....	special effects foreman
Jeff Mather	....	special effects assistant
Mitchell Medford	....	special effects assistant (as Mitchell A. Medford)
Carl Merritt	....	special effects assistant (as Carl Alexander Merritt)
Dean W. Miller	....	special effects foreman (as Dean Miller)
Jay Mullenax	....	special effects assistant
Jeff Naparstek	....	special effects foreman
Ralph Pavarotto	....	special effects
Eric Shanoltz	....	special effects assistant
Ed Stamps	....	special effects assistant
Raymond M. Tasillo	....	special effects foreman (as Raymond Tasillo)
Matt Vogel	....	special effects coordinator

Visual Effects by
Ted Rae	....	matte painter/compositor: forced perspective miniatures (uncredited)

Stunts
Steve Boyum	....	stunt coordinator (as Steve M. Boyum)
Bob Brown	....	utility stunts (as Bobby Brown)
Steven Chambers	....	utility stunts (as Steve Chambers)
Mark Combs	....	utility stunts
Steve M. Davison	....	utility stunts (as Steve Davison)
Tom Elliott	....	utility stunts
Moctesuma Esparza	....	utility stunts
Mark Fulks	....	stunt double
Buddy Gilyard	....	utility stunts
Tom Harper	....	stunts
Billy Hank Hooker	....	utility stunts (as Hank Hooker)
Tommy J. Huff	....	utility stunts (as Tom Huff)
Gary McLarty	....	utility stunts
John Meier	....	utility stunts
Mic Rodgers	....	utility stunts
Michael Runyard	....	utility stunts (as Mike Runyard)
Doug Sloan	....	stunt double
Gregg Smrz	....	utility stunts
C.J. Staats	....	stunt double
R.L. Tolbert	....	utility stunts

Camera and Electrical Department
Don Aros	....	electrician (as Donald Aros)
Curtis Bradford	....	gaffer (as Curtiss Bradford)
Brian 'Buzz' Buzzelli	....	grip: second unit (as Brian Buzzelli)
Ellsworth Chou	....	electrician
Douglas Coates	....	electrician: second unit
Alan Colbert	....	electrician (as Alan P. Colbert)
Tim Collins	....	dolly grip
Mark Combs	....	key grip: second unit
Joseph V. Dickerson	....	grip
Eduard van der Enden	....	director of photography: second unit (as Eddy Van Der Enden)
Rodney French	....	grip
Rusty Gardner	....	electrician (as William 'Rusty' Gardner)
Christopher Dunn George	....	assistant camera: second unit (as Christopher George)
Thomas Greco	....	camera loader
Paul Hamacher	....	grip: second unit
David A. Harp	....	first assistant camera (as David Harp)
Erik Heinila	....	still photographer
Jonathan Herron	....	camera operator: "b" camera (as Jon Herron)
Susan C. Ingram	....	assistant camera: "b" camera (as Susan Ingram)
Joe Kurtz	....	grip: second unit (as Joseph Kurtz)
Jerry Lee	....	grip: second unit
Crispin May	....	second assistant camera: second unit
Patrick McAllister	....	electrician
Chris Moseley	....	camera operator: "b" camera, second unit
John Nash	....	best boy grip
Mike Nash	....	grip
Rafael Ortiz-Guzman	....	additional camera operator: second unit (as Rafael Ortiz)
Onofrio Nino Pansini	....	second assistant camera
David Parker	....	best boy grip: second unit
Rick Perez	....	electrician (as Richard Perez)
Tim Pershing	....	key grip
Scott Satterfield	....	grip: second unit (as Scott N. Sattersfield)
Keith Seymour	....	grip
David Stein	....	best boy grip: second unit
David J. Thompson	....	assistant camera (as David James Thompson)
Don Tomich	....	best boy electric
Ron Vargas	....	additional camera operator: second unit
Maria Varni	....	camera loader
Ralf Voellmer	....	electrician
Greg Walters	....	first assistant camera: second unit
Dave Wilkins	....	grip (as David Wilkins)
Merrick Morton	....	special still photographer (uncredited)

Casting Department
Lynne Redding	....	adr voice casting: Loop du Jour

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Anna Abbey	....	costumer (as Anne Abbey)
Marsha Barton	....	seamstress
Dana Campbell	....	key set costumer
Jay Anna Dorsey	....	assistant costume designer
Stanley Moore	....	costume supervisor

Editorial Department
Lisa Bianco	....	post-production assistant editor
Sue Ehlers	....	first assistant film editor
Andrew Golov	....	post-production services
Mato	....	color timer
Marc Pollon	....	apprentice editor
Candace Snyder	....	director of post-production: TNT
Joseph R. Thygesen	....	associate film editor (as Joe Thygesen)
Angie Under	....	post-production assistant
Michael Yetter	....	negative cutter (uncredited)

Music Department
Elton Ahi	....	scoring mixer
Grimace Boyer	....	assistant musical director
Joanie Diener	....	music editor
Ralph Ferraro	....	orchestrator
David Franco	....	music supervisor
Dennis S. Sands	....	scoring mixer (as Dennis Sands)
Hill Brin Swimmer	....	location music recording (as Hill Swimmer)
Joseph R. Thygesen	....	associate music editor (as Joe Thygesen)

Transportation Department
Norma Allard	....	talent driver
E. Michael Bledsoe	....	transportation captain
Ron Bledsoe	....	transportation coordinator
Vincent Leo Boyle	....	driver
Duane D. Eckert	....	driver
Clay Fissel	....	driver
Paul French	....	driver
Jason Ingram	....	driver
Pamela Newton	....	driver
Michael Olswfski	....	driver
Henrietta C. O'Shea	....	driver
James P. O'Shea	....	driver
David Owens	....	driver
Pat Owens	....	driver
Geraldine Sue Roderick	....	driver
Tony L. Sarrah	....	driver
Joseph Schneider	....	driver
Larry Slimp	....	talent driver
Debra A. Vitulli	....	driver
Joyce A. Warfield	....	driver
Jim Welshonce	....	driver
Randy Worley	....	driver
Carolyn Wright	....	transportation dispatcher
Kenneth Wright	....	transportation co-captain
Tonia Wright	....	driver

Other crew
Lara Aldrich	....	office production assistant
Eduardo N.T. Andrade	....	production assistant: second unit (as Eduardo Andrade)
Jon Andrus	....	action re-enactor
Rhett Arnold	....	craft service
Kim Barta	....	corps background wrangler
Yvonne Barton	....	re-enactors coordinator
Ralph Berge	....	location coordinator (as Ralph Kendall Berge)
Gabor Boritt	....	historical script reviewer: Gettysburg College (as Prof. Gabor S. Boritt)
Dan Boston	....	corps background wrangler
John Botkin	....	caterer: re-enator catering
Joe Bowden	....	film liaison: Gettysburg National Military Park
Carolyn Caldera	....	assistant: Mr. Katz & Mr. Esparza
Mike Causley	....	action re-enactor
Marie E. Chambers	....	dialect coach
Jose A. Cisneros	....	superintendent: Gettysburg National Military Park
Laurie E. Coughlan	....	interpretation and visitor services: Gettysburg National Military Park
Craig Crabb	....	action re-enactor
Butch Culpepper	....	corps background wrangler
Wendy Dallas	....	script supervisor: second unit
Noel Dimitri Delcastillo	....	production assistant: second unit
Hans Den Bezemer	....	flycam operator: second unit (as Hans der Bezemer)
Don Dramer	....	corps background wrangler
Dawn C. Dreiling	....	script supervisor (as Dawn Dreiling)
Patrick Falci	....	historical advisor (as Pat Falci)
Dale Fetzer	....	military choreographer (as Dale E. Fetzer Jr.)
Gwenn Forsythe	....	office production assistant
Billy L. 'Butch' Frank	....	wrangler (as Billy Frank)
Gary G. Frank	....	wrangler
Rami Rivera Frankl	....	production assistant: second unit (as Rami Frankl)
Mark Fulks	....	wrangler
Karl German	....	corps background wrangler
Keith Gibson	....	historical script reviewer: Virginia Military Institute (as Lt. Col. Keith Gibson)
Dwight Gladhill	....	dailies runner
Wilson A. Greene	....	historical script reviewer
Mike Grigaliunas	....	dailies runner
Nancie W. Gudmestad	....	production secretary
Lori Haddox	....	coordinator: Los Angeles
Marge Hall	....	assistant re-enactor coordinator
Joe Hanna	....	chef
Nick Hanna	....	craft service
Judy C. Harris	....	assistant re-enactor coordinator
Jim Hatsell	....	corps background wrangler
Stephen M. Hearst	....	production assistant: second unit
George Heffner	....	re-enactors corps commander: Confederate
Beth Hickman	....	production coordinator
Clark Hoak	....	action re-enactor
Chuck Johnson	....	corps background wrangler
Roger Johnson	....	re-enactors corps commander: Confederate
Steven M. Kalb	....	production legal counsel
Katie Karppala	....	dailies runner
Sarah Kelly	....	production assistant: second unit
Dennis Kern	....	location manager
John Kock	....	corps background wrangler
Michael Kraus	....	re-enactors corps commander: Federal
Tim Kueberth	....	assistant cavalry commander (as Timothy Kuebreth)
Victoria Land	....	set production assistant
Dan Laroc	....	craft service
Amy Lauritsen	....	set production assistant
Rick Leisenring	....	assistant re-enactor coordinator (as Rick Liesenring)
Peter Locaccio	....	assistant location manager
Karl Luthin	....	corps background wrangler (as Karl Luthen D.V.M.)
G. Gary Mahas	....	wrangler
Jonathan Maxwell	....	set production assistant (as Jon Maxwell)
Olivia Maxwell	....	set production assistant
Ronald F. Maxwell	....	title designer: main titles
Mark Myers	....	corps background wrangler
Bryan Patterson	....	action re-enactor
Kelly Paull	....	assistant re-enactor coordinator
Marcia Paull	....	re-enactors coordinator
Ron Paull	....	chief of security
James Permane	....	assistant re-enactor coordinator
George Pierce	....	corps background wrangler
Brian Pohanka	....	on-set historical advisor
Roger Poirer	....	caterer: re-enator catering
Ron Prillaman	....	action re-enactor
Mark Purnell	....	production assistant: second unit
Roger Ragland	....	corps background wrangler
Selbia J. Reagan	....	assistant re-enactor coordinator
Robin Reck	....	production assistant: second unit
Damon Resch	....	assistant: Mr. Maxwell
Jason Rex	....	set production assistant
Bill Reynolds	....	corps background wrangler
John Rivas	....	prep cook
Mark Rivas	....	assistant chef
Alicia Rivera Frankl	....	vice president of finance (as Alicia Rivera Alon)
Susan Roehre	....	assistant production accountant
Harold Runckel	....	corps background wrangler
Cheryl Russo	....	re-enactors coordinator
Alan Selge	....	assistant re-enactor coordinator
Sarah Shields	....	key production assistant: second unit
Peter C. Sienkiewicz	....	production assistant: second unit
Misty Skedgell	....	unit publicist
Doug Sloan	....	head wrangler
Ben Smith	....	corps background wrangler
Charles Smithgall	....	artillery commander
David Spencer	....	corps background wrangler
C.J. Staats	....	wrangler
Ame Stargensky	....	script supervisor
David Stevens	....	action re-enactor
Tia Stine	....	office production assistant (as Krystia 'Tia' Stine)
Bruce Stocking	....	re-enactors corps commander: Federal
Jim Strauss	....	corps background wrangler (as James Strauss)
William Sumner	....	action re-enactor
Jeff Talbert	....	corps background wrangler
Diane Tennyson	....	set production assistant
Joe Valley	....	corps background wrangler
Jon Verhagen	....	flycam operator: second unit
Kevin Wells	....	corps background wrangler
Tom Williams	....	cavalry commander
William Williams	....	re-enactors camp manager
Melissa Wivell	....	office production assistant
James Yap Bear	....	action re-enactor
Yale Zimmerman	....	medical coordinator
John Guss	....	historical technical assistant (uncredited)
Cynthia Lejeune	....	assistant accountant (uncredited)
Darryl Wharton	....	production assistant (uncredited)

Thanks
Kenneth J. Cole	....	special thanks
Don Johnson	....	special thanks
Richard Jordan	....	dedicatee
Terry Punt	....	special thanks
Lou Reda	....	special thanks
Gar Royer	....	special thanks
Velda Royer	....	special thanks
Michael Shaara	....	dedicatee
Art L. Snyder	....	special thanks
Bill Yingling	....	special thanks
Don Yingling	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• Esparza / Katz Productions
• Turner Pictures (I)

Distributors

• New Line Cinema (1993) (USA) (theatrical)
• Turner Network Television (TNT) (1993) (USA) (TV)
• Turner Home Entertainment (1993) (USA) (VHS)
• Image Entertainment (1994) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Image Entertainment (1995) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Turner Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)

Special Effects

• Makeup Effects Laboratories

Other Companies

• Milan Records  soundtrack
• Sound Satisfaction  foley recording facilities

Also Known As:

The Killer Angels (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

261 min | Sweden:254 min | UK:259 min | Netherlands:244 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

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

Certification:

USA:PG (certificate no. 31000) | Iceland:12 | Canada:PG | Greece:K-13 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Germany:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Adams County, Pennsylvania, USA

Company:

Esparza / Katz Productions

Trivia:

The final scene of the movie, when Tom and Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain are reunited on the battlefield as the sun goes down, was the final scene to be filmed, a rare occurance for a motion picture. It took aprox. one dozen takes to shoot.

Goofs:

Continuity: Longstreet informs Pickett of the July 3 attack in the morning, and yet the sun is in the western sky.

Quotes:

Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain: This is a different kind of army. If you look at history you'll see men fight for pay, or women, or some other kind of loot. They fight for land, or because a king makes them, or just because they like killing. But we're here for something new. This hasn't happened much in the history of the world...

Movie Connections:

Featured in "The O'Reilly Factor: (2008-02-26)" (2008)

Excellent, not perfect, but excellent

With a few notable exceptions Schindler's List, Braveheart, Saving Private Ryan and Glory, history based movies usually die quick and quiet in the movie theater (The Messenger, Ride with the Devil, Cobb) History flicks cost a bundle to make with the costumes and the challenge of finding a place to shoot that's nowhere near highways, bridges, and cities, and they don't always appeal to mass audiences.

So it's not that often that really good historical film comes around. As a result, it's good not to be too fussy when one does. Both Gettysburg and the Killer Angels, the book it was based on, were stuffed with historical inaccuracies, the grossest of all being the presence of the 20th Maine regiment anywhere near Pickett's charge (this happens in both the movie and the book).

For all the lengthy soliloquies, historical misses, whitewashed violence, and the fact that only about 30% of the battle of Gettysburg is shown on film, Gettysburg remains as the best effort to capture the sprawling battle of July 1863 on film. Where the movie lacks in realism, it makes up for it's dialogue, and in the scope of the battle scenes, which are on a scale so grand, that the bloodless body count and the inaccurate tactics can be forgiven. The sheer numbers of soldiers taking part in Pickett's charge was breathtaking. Kudos to the reenactors.

Martin Sheen and Tom Beringer were they're usual excellent selves as Lee and Longstreet and for me, their ongoing debate of the strategy of Gettysburg helped make the movie. Other highlights include the disenchantment of Union soldiers at this stage of the Civil War, and the personal trauma Richard Jordan's Lewis Armistead felt at having to fight his friend Winfield Hancock not only in the same war, but in the same sector of the same battle of that war.

Much of Gettysburg has to be viewed with a grain of salt, but until a Stephen Speilberg or other directing genius with a knack for war footage comes along, it's one of the best we have. And it's pretty good.