Union Bound

Union Bound immediately immerses you in how it felt to be in the Civil War. It opens with 4,500+ civil war buff extras doing battle along with dramatic visual and sound effects which is extremely moving. The real impact comes from multiple unexpected and unlikely heroes. Throughout the film you can't believe things that actually happened to people during the civil war, who helped who, and why they did it.

The attention to period details such as darkening the teeth was good. Cinematography was well done even though much of it was in swamps and difficult terrain. A few scenes were disturbing (expected for this type of film).

Great film to experience!

This film has problems; some of them severe. Production values would probably head the list. The film appeared to be made for less than $50,000. Obvious use of re-inactment ceremonies by various Civil War groups who trot out once a year to do fake battle were pretty much what this film used. That didnt cost a thing, except for the cameraman and editing. The B actors worked for scale, I am sure, and the story, although interesting, was not strong enough to overcome some lulls in the action and dialogue. The dialogue, most of the time, was not too bad. Some of the secondary characters were obviously first-time actors (or at least I hope they were). It appeared as if several community play groups may have been involved as well. The two primary buddy actors, Ryan and Young, were not too bad, but at times, the dialogue was stilted. Not a bad story, but could have been better with a few more dollars spent on it.

Two reasons why I went to go see this: one, my cousin Dane worked on the music, and two, I like history.

So what did I think? Time for the review! The story takes place during the Civil War. Two Union soldiers are captured by the Confederates. They are taken to a prison camp and escape shortly after. This is where I will leave off.

The story is based on a true event that was written by the main character, in his diary.

The characters are interesting, especially one that is humorous.

This is a low budget film, so I knew going in that it wouldn't be like the quality of a Marvel film. But the acting was decent, and some scenes did hit you with emotion and humor.

One of my only complaints is that when we watched it in the theater, the dialogue volume was kinda low, so it was hard to hear what they were saying at points.

My Final Thoughts: For a low budget film, it wasn't bad. Dane did a great job with the music, which really did impact the moments of a scene and show the Southern part of America; it fits. The action was decent and the story was good.

This film is not about Hollywood Hype but has a quality of production with a story that will impress. While delivering great entertainment this film is based on the true diary of a Union soldier that finds himself imprisoned behind enemy lines.

New friends, new allies and a new purpose to live gives the main character the will to go on. Through many tests and trials he learns that freedom is never free. In order to give freedom to the slaves a price beyond measure is paid by so many.

Union Bound is not washed in the typical movie clichés of filth, language or poor hygiene that most Hollywood films have. Most war films would have us believe that people lived in filth and ate garbage.

War was not pretty but people had pride in their uniform and respect was important to them. Where most script writers cannot finish a sentence without a curse word this film is true to its time.

No it is not a 50 Million dollar tax right off Hollywood production but rather a quality film about real characters played by real people.Certainly a film that history buffs will enjoy....perhaps even learn something they never knew before.

I found viewing this movie an enjoyable experience and liked the personal story aspect of one man's trials during the Civil War unfolded. It is not a typical battlefield portrayed in the usual war movie. Instead, this film focused on how people were challenged and chose to deal with issues during this difficult period of time in our country's history. While all the actors did a credible portrayal of characters, Tank Jones provided an amazing and emotional portrayal of the slave. The costuming was very authentic for the period and the cinematography was wonderful. Kudos to the writer, director, producers and crew for portraying Joseph Hoover's diary in such an authentic way.