The Alamo (2004)

User Rating:

5.9/10   

Director:

John Lee Hancock

Writers (WGA):

Leslie Bohem (written by) and
Stephen Gaghan (written by) ...

Release Date:

9 April 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | War | Western

Tagline:

You will never forget

Plot:

Based on the 1836 standoff between a group of Texan and Tejano men, led by Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie, and Mexican dictator Santa Anna's forces at the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas.

Plot Keywords:

Texas | Alamo | Siege | Sam Houston | Davy Crockett

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Dennis Quaid	...	Sam Houston
Billy Bob Thornton	...	Davy Crockett
Jason Patric	...	James Bowie
Patrick Wilson	...	William Travis
Emilio Echevarría	...	Antonio Lopez de Santa Ana
Jordi Mollà	...	Juan Seguin
Leon Rippy	...	Sgt. William Ward
Tom Davidson	...	Colonel Green Jameson
Marc Blucas	...	James Bonham
Robert Prentiss	...	Albert Grimes
Kevin Page	...	Micajah Autry
Joe Stevens	...	Mial Scurlock
Stephen Bruton	...	Captain Almeron Dickinson
Laura Clifton	...	Susanna Dickinson
Ricardo Chavira	...	Private Gregorio Esparza (as Ricardo S. Chavira)

Also Known As:

The Alamo (Philippines: English title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sustained intense battle sequences.

Runtime:

137 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS-ES | Dolby Digital EX | SDDS

Certification:

Netherlands:12 | Germany:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Finland:K-11 | Iceland:12 | Ireland:12 | Italy:T | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | UK:12A | USA:PG-13 (certificate #40620) | Norway:15

Filming Locations:

Texas, USA

Company:

Touchstone Pictures

Trivia:

At 51 acres, the set was the largest and most expensive set built in North America to date.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Davy Crockett did not surrender, nor was he captured. He died in battle. Mrs. Dickinson the only Anglo survivor recounts to a biographer,"I recognized Col. Crockett lying dead and mutilated between the church and the two story barrack building, and even remember seeing his peculiar cap lying by his side". Ben, a former American slave who acted as cook for one of Santa Anna's officers, maintained that Crockett's body was found in the barracks surrounded by "no less than sixteen Mexican corpses", with Crockett's knife buried in one of them. There is no verification of the De La Pena letters and most scholars now agree they were a deliberate fabrication.

Quotes:

Davy Crockett: What are you sellin', Sam?
Sam Houston: Something a certain congressman might need in the future.
Davy Crockett: Are you sellin' rocking chairs, Sam?
Sam Houston: I'm selling Texas.
Davy Crockett: Now, what would I want with Norte Mexico?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Alamo Documentary (2004) (V)

Soundtrack:

La Zandunga

A very good film

I am sick of people denigrating films like this. It seems that the average audience member these days is offended by anything that requires a bit of thought. They dismiss characters with any complexity as either cases of "bad acting" or "bad scripting".

I enjoyed The Alamo very much, and my only regret is that the finished version is not longer. I found it absorbing and very satisfying to watch.

Another very fine film, Alexander, got a similar reaction from "critics" and mainstream viewers.

Meanwhile, the simplistic likes of "The Patriot" and "Kingdom of Heaven" are considered to be perfectly fine.