Civil War Films
By: Hunter Stone
Gods and Generals
Gods and Generals was about the first battles of the civil war, all the way up to Gettysburg. During this movie the confederate army and General "Stonewall" Jackson beat the union army in many battles. The beginning of the Civil War was dominated by the Confederates and it look like they were going to shock America by swiftly defeating the Union army. Little did they know; the union army would make a quick turning point in the war. General "Stonewall" Jackson was the leader of the Confederate army who was shot by his own men in a confusion and later died due to sickness. General Stonewall Jackson was thought to be one of the greatest American leaders of all time. He was a very godly man who had great leadership and respect from his men. General Robert E. Lee was a General who also led the Confederate army. General Lee was not as good of a leader and did not do as much for the confederacy as general Jackson did. Colonel Chamberlain was a man who openly volunteered for the military and did all he could to make the Union stronger. Chamberlain led the 20th Maine regiment, which was one of the strongest regiments in the Union army.
General Robert E. Lee
Full leader of the confederate army.
Colonel Chamberlain
Leader of the 20th Maine Regiment.
General Stonewall Jackson
General of the Confederate Army. Rejected an offer from the president to lead the union army.
Gettysburg
The movie Gettysburg is about the final battles of the Civil war. Gettysburg was the turning point in the Civil War, the battle shifted the Civil War from a heavily dominated Confederate lead, to a Union victory. The battle of Gettysburg showed many crucial defenses and use of the high ground advantage by the North. Lt. General Longstreet was a former general of the Union army. Longstreet wanted to use more skillful tactics rather than just charging right at the Union fronts. General Robert E. Lee is the leader of the confederate army, he is adored by his men and will follow him into any battle. General Lee prefers to just meet the enemy head on, rather than using tactics to get the upper hand. Lt. Colonel Joshua Chamberlain is the Leader of the 20th Maine regiment, who mounts the defense on Little Round Top. He knew that if his lines broke then the whole Union army would have been swept from the side.
Glory
Glory was the first film to feature the role of African Americans in the Civil War. It is about the 54th Massachusetts regiment (An all black regiment) and their hard work and courage during the Civil War. Colonel Robert Gould Shaw was the leader of the 54th Massachusetts and fought for the equality of his men. Private Trip was a volunteer for the regiment. He was often hard headed and caused trouble within the group. Sgt. Maj. John Rawlins was first a volunteer but showed great leadership and strength. These traits got him promoted and respected among the volunteers and leaders of the regiment.
Lincoln
During this film; the Civil war is about to come to an end and President Lincoln is trying to pass the 13th Amendment which will revolutionize America and depart from the old ways of slavery in the states. President Lincoln was an honest man who fought for the equality of African Americans. He did not care what others thought of him and stood up for what was right.
Personal Views & Opinions
I have learned that the Civil War was a very gruesome high casualty war. Friends and even family were squaring off against each other for what they believed was the right way to live their life. This war was a very important war in American history because if the outcome would have been a Confederate victory, then our modern day society could be so much different than it is in the present day. I thought that many of the films had great content and portrayed the characters in an accurate way. Some of the films were a little slow getting to the point and hard to follow along, but not every movie is appealing to every student.