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Battle of Gettysburg 150th Anniversary (1 Viewer)

Robert Crawford

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A 150 years ago today, July 1st, the Battle of Gettysburg began wtih the forces of the Union and Confederate Armies engaged in a three day battle that became the turning point of The Civil War. To honor those that participated in that great battle I'm going to watch Blu-ray Director's Cut of Gettysburg over the next three days.

Today, I'll view the first day of the battle in which Union General John Buford took the high ground at Gettysburg as the defensive position against the Confederate forces.

Tomorrow on July 2nd, I view the second day of the battle in which the Blu-ray focuses on Joshua Chamberlain and Little Round Top. Also, the BD on the second day shows Devil's Den, another hot spot of that battle.

On Wednesday, the third day of the battle I will finish the Blu-ray by viewing Pickett's Charge and the aftermath of that day and the battle.
 

Peter Apruzzese

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I watched the movie last night up to the intermission point, right after Little Round Top, and will finish either tonight or tomorrow. Jeff Daniels screaming "Bayonets!!!" is one of the most chilling/thrilling moments in any war picture, IMO. *I'd* go into battle with him, and I'm a coward at heart. :)
 

Charles Smith

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If you've never driven over and seen Gettysburg, it's something well worth doing at least once. I hadn't been through there since I was a kid, but I took a leisurely detour and spent a few hours there a couple of years ago and was blown away by the enormity of ... well, everything about it -- the battle sites, the monuments (the first timer has NO IDEA...), the historical and emotional impact. It was easy to see how one can develop a lifelong interest in studying even an individual battle, let alone the entire war. It's just overwhelming.Given this anniversary year, I wonder how close you could even get to the place without advance planning.Oh yes, definitely watching the film over these couple of nights. And maybe some Ken Burns.
 

Richard--W

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View attachment 2529
Robert Crawford said:
A 150 years ago today, July 1st, the Battle of Gettysburg began wtih the forces of the Union and Confederate Armies engaged in a three day battle that became the turning point of The Civil War. To honor those that participated in that great battle I'm going to watch Blu-ray Director's Cut of Gettysburg over the next three days.

Today, I'll view the first day of the battle in which Union General John Buford took the high ground at Gettysburg as the defensive position against the Confederate forces.

Tomorrow on July 2nd, I view the second day of the battle in which the Blu-ray focuses on Joshua Chamberlain and Little Round Top. Also, the BD on the second day shows Devil's Den, another hot spot of that battle.

On Wednesday, the third day of the battle I will finish the Blu-ray by viewing Pickett's Charge and the aftermath of that day and the battle.
Good for you, Robert Crawford. That's the spirit.

You've just talked me into doing the same.

The extended edition blu-ray is the one to watch.

Perhaps during the day I'll do a little reading on Gettysburg in my home library.

I had hoped for the third and final part of the trilogy this year (Gettysburg came out in 1993, Gods and Generals in 2003, respectively) but alas Ted Turner seems to have turned his back on the enterprise.

Gettysburg-1993_zpsef7d0f7d.jpg
 

David_B_K

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Watching each day's events as depicted in Gettysburg over the actual days sounds like a great idea. I think I will do likewise.
 

Ray H

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I made the same plans and watched the first day today. I may finish the rest of the movie tomorrow though to make time for Gods and Generals on the 3rd.
 

Robert Crawford

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Actually, the BD covered two days, June 30th is when Buford deployed his two brigades of Union cavalry as he formed a defensive position at Gettysburg then July 1st in which the Confederate forces engaged Buford's men before Buford became reinforced with Reynolds Union infantry. Man, what a great BD and I can't wait until tomorrow to view July 2nd and Little Round Top.
 

David_B_K

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I watched from the beginning (June 30) through the night of July 1. I will begin tonight at the point where the caption July 2, 1863, The Second Day of Battle appears. I will try to get an earlier start tonight. It was a bit difficult to sleep after all the cannon fire. It will be even more difficult after the intensity of the Little Round Top attack/defense.
 

Robert Crawford

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David_B_K said:
I watched from the beginning (June 30) through the night of July 1. I will begin tonight at the point where the caption July 2, 1863, The Second Day of Battle appears. I will try to get an earlier start tonight. It was a bit difficult to sleep after all the cannon fire. It will be even more difficult after the intensity of the Little Round Top attack/defense.
Yeah, I got done watching the same last night at 11:30 p.m. and didn't sleep well so I just got up at 4:00 a.m. and came into work.
 

Robert Crawford

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Besides the battle at Little Round Top, my favorite part of July 2nd of this film is Lee giving Jeb Stuart an ass chewing for leaving the Confederate Army blind to the enemy. A show of disappointment, anger, mentoring and forgiveness in one crucial scene. Also, I cracked up when Chamberlain woke up his younger brother by addressing him as "momma's favorite". The real life Joshua Chamberlain must have been an extraordinary man to say the least.
 

Peter Apruzzese

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Finished the second half tonight (tomorrow night is for "1776"), and the movie is as great as ever. Just as Jeff Daniels owns the acting honors for the first half, Richard Jordan owns the second half."Not both of us...not all of us!"
 

Robert Crawford

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Many of those generals on both sides had to have major conflicts within themselves as they fought these battles against former friends and comrades. A lot of them were even West Point classmates and after graduation, many of them faced death beforehand in prior military action together. It really had to be a surreal experience for many of them.
 

Richard--W

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I couldn't stop watching with yesterday's battle's, I had to play the film all the way through.

The memorable moments just keep on coming.

The historical intelligence of the film astounds me. It communicates emotionally by reconstructing what happened.

What a difference the hi-def transfer makes in appreciating this film.
 

David_B_K

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This is actually my first time to watch the Gettysburg Blu-ray, which I've had since its release. It's also my first time to see the longer version since my laserdisc in the big special edition box developed "laser rot". I somehow couldn't find the time for a 4-1/2 hour film, and my wife does not like war movies in general. Thanks to Robert for the suggestion of watching this over three days!

Some of the added scenes provide extra details and flesh out some characters a bit more. When I saw the film in the theater, my only gripe about what was missing from the novel was the scene between Lee, Ewell, Early and Rhodes (and A.P. Hill). The failure to take Culp's Hill on Day 1 was a huge mistake for the Rebs, and the importance of that needed to be stressed more. Ewell had lost his "spark" after being wounded and losing a leg earlier in the year. Before that, he had been one of Jackson's most talented generals. The restored scene (in addition to the already existing scene with Trimble) showed Ewell as indecisive and deferring to his subordinate Early and made it clear that the failure at Culp's Hill would come back to haunt the Confederates.

Looking forward to day three tonight.
 

Robert Crawford

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I finished up watching the BD last night. What struck me is the angst look on Longstreet's face as it gives Pickett the final order to move his troops forward knowing full well the charge was going to be a failure. It's like knowing something bad is going to happen, but you can't stop it from happening as control of the situation is out of your hands. Also, I viewed much of the bonus material again. One day, I'll have to watch the film again with the audio commentary.
 

David_B_K

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Having not watched it for quite a while, I was struck by the epic sweep. Last week I watched the Blu-ray of Zulu Dawn. A month or so ago, I saw Cleopatra in a theater. There is nothing comparable to epics like these with thousands of real people recreating historic events. No, the battle scenes in Gettysburg do not feature the gore of a Saving Private Ryan, and every cannon explosion was in slow motion with guys flying through the air. But seeing the movement of huge bands of troops was mighty impressive. Seeing Pickett's men emerge from the woods and form up was as impressive to me as the charge itself. So many movies today are CGI dominated. Epics like Gettysburg with real people in real locations just pack a wallop that CGI cannot provide.

Another thing the film (and book) does very well is to put the viewer on one side at a time. It tends to concentrate on one side so that you get wrapped up with that side and you are not conficted as you watch the events unfold; then it switches. It does not cut back and forth during a battle sequence. So, at the beginning of the fighting, it concentrates on Buford's choice to stand and fight. We are with Buford and his cavalry; the Confederates attacking are nameless guys we don't get caught up with. When the film switches to the rebs forming up to attack, we are with the Confederates as they try to ascertain where the yanks are and attempt to dislodge them. We are with the Confederates when Longstreet and Hood plan the attack on Little Round Top, but the attack/defense itself is seen exclusively from the Union side. When I saw the film theatrically in 1993, there was an intermission right after the 20th Maine's charge. The second half began with Longstreet visiting the gravely wounded Hood. It kept Chamberlain's succes and Hood's defeat separate so that we could experience and be a part of both individually. So, throughout the film, we are allowed to be on each side and we tend to hope for the best for whichever side we're with at the time. The film (and book) by doing this really gives us a sense of the tragic brother against brother nature of the Civil War, probably more than any other Civil War film.

Also, I doubt I am the only one who, after the film was over, felt compelled to watch the 20th Maine's charge again. The movements and camera angles are superb in that scene with Randy Edelman's sweeping score in the background. Truly stirring stuff!
 

JohnMor

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Okay, guys, a question for you: I'm about to dig in and watch Gettysburg and Gods and Generals for the first time this weekend. Which should I watch first? I know Gettysburg came first, but isn't Gods and Generals a prequel? Which is the best viewing order?
 

Steve_Pannell

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David_B_K said:
So many movies today are CGI dominated. Epics like Gettysburg with real people in real locations just pack a wallop that CGI cannot provide.
All that, and NO "shaky-cam". I really wish some in Hollywood would take notes from a movie like Gettysburg.
 

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