Cold Harbor.

[illreb]

I thought the "Love Story" was sappy and a bit hard to believe, but I think, as Dawna has already mentioned, the rest of the story was very interesting and had a very believable 19th century feel.
Illreb

[tamaroa]

Hi all, to clarify; the basis for the movie was Charles Frazier great great uncle. He said in an interview that all the family lore together including Inman's service records amounted to little more than two paragraphs. So the book is really a novel. I cannot even call it historical fiction. However, I read it years ago and enjoyed it. I went to see the movie because I enjoyed the book.

There was a time when I was a nitpicker going to see period movies. I would tear it apart when it was wrong. However, I also realized I was paying good money to go to a movie and become annoyed. Lately, I have decided to just suspend belief and enjoy the movie. Though I did manage to annoy my wonderful wife of 33 years when we were watching an episode of Babylon 5 a sci fi series the other night. There was a scene where the security chief Garibaldi went "down below" in a machinery room. There were steam leaks every where. I know it was there for atmosphere but; as a former Chief Engineer, I inadvertantly blurted out that the Chief Engineer of that place should be shot for doing such lousy preventive maintenance. Boy the look I got!! At any rate, the movie Cold Mountain was great Renee Zellweger stole the movie. It told a story that was close enough to the book so as not to be sacreligious to the memory of the work.

Just enjoy it.

Bill

Well, I have always used the rule of thumb that if a secondary character steals the show, then the show is in trouble.

Bill, nitpick away. It is the little needles of inconsistency that pops the big balloons of suspension of disbelief needed to enjoy a film. Do not blame yourself. These people make too much money to be allowed to insult your intelligence. The least they can do is not ruin it for us.

I tend to be a serious movie and book snob though so I’d make a horrible critic. I always feel like the film industry considers the public a bunch of slack jawed hype junkies who check their brains at the ticket counter and I refuse to accept the way they insult what limited intelligence I do have. Must be a character flaw.

[thea_447]

I make it a point not to see a movie if I've read the book. My imagination is so fertile that the characters on film never do justice to what I dreamed in my mind. Plus Hollywood always has to throw in the token sex scenes, the filthy language, etc. that weren't always a part of the book.

To make matters worse sometimes they change the ending which is infuriating. If the character is supposed to die, please don't turn it into a morality play and allow the bad guy to see the error of his ways and live to show others a better way! Just kill him!

Oh,and let's not forget the movies where they hire someone who's obviously never even HEARD a Southerner speak and ask him to emulate a Southern drawl. Ye Gods and little fishes!

So, in the case of Cold Harbor, I have a clear choice: either read the book or see the movie. I believe in this one instance I'm going to see the movie simply because I love Kidman and Zellwegger. I'll irritate my husband by spouting about the historical inaccuracies but he'll survive.

[hoosier]

Thea, I agree with you 100% that I could do without the gratuitous sex scenes and filthy language that Hollywood seems to think absolutely have to be included in a movie.

That's probably one reason why I liked "Gettysburg" so much. No filthy language that I can remember and the closest thing to a sex scene was two women standing by the road watching the Union soldiers pass through Maryland on their way to the battle.

I haven't seen "Gods and Generals" as many times, but I don't think there was much, if any, bad language in that one, either. They might have shown Stonewall Jackson and his wife in bed together, but as I recall, the scene wasn't any racier than the bedroom scenes on the old "Dick Van Dyke Show."