Watched "Gettysburg" over the past weekend, based on Michael Shaara's prize-winning novel, Killer Angels. Odd when I realize that it came out on the big screen in 1993, and I had never seen it; couldn't believe it had been that long a time. It's an enormously LONG movie (over 4 hours), but well worth the investment of time. I actually watched it in two parts, which I think it was a good idea to have a break in there. An extensive rendering of the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863, this was filmed entirely in Gettysburg and Adams County, Pa., which greatly added to the authentic feel of the movie. Several storylines intertwine among both the Federal and Confederate troops, and the viewer comes to know Colonel Joshua Chamberlain of Maine and his brother Thomas, General James Longstreet, Major General George E. Pickett, and General Robert E. Lee, among others. Primarily, though, the movie is about the great battle, which was truly a turning point of the war. Much screen time was expended on the horrors of Devil's Den and the various issues that existed in Chamberlain's troops--a lack of men, lack of ammunition, lack of supplies, and the knowledge that they were the very end of the line and could not under any circumstances, retreat, or all would be lost. So many men died on that battlefield, and that loss was clearly portrayed with shots of dead and dying men, some blood shown, but definitely restrained in terms of gore (when cannons are fired, you don't see someone's head get blown off--I know it happened, but I don't really need it to be that graphic). The film is fairly well cast, with many familiar faces: Jeff Daniels and C. Thomas Howell are entertaining as the Chamberlain brothers, Tom Berenger is good as Longstreet. Daniels' portrayal of Chamberlain is outstanding and sympathetic and one of the better characters in the movie. I was not impressed by Martin Sheen's portrayal of Lee--it just didn't sit right for some reason, not sure why. Perhaps my idea of Lee's personality just isn't the same as the screenwriter's. Stephen Lang as Pickett was awesome, if a little over the top, but definitely entertaining whenever he was on screen--his huge shock and fury at losing most of his men in the famous charge is totally compelling, and Richard Jordan as Brigadier General Armistead gave a rather touching portrait of a man definitely in conflict over a friendship with a colleague fighting on the opposite side. I enjoyed seeing Billy Campbell, Patrick James Stuart, George Lazenby, Sam Elliott, and Buck Taylor in good supporting roles. And Kevin Conway was excellent in the role of the Irish sergeant fighting alongside Col. Chamberlain. The accuracy of the costumes, the care taken with the battle depiction, the shifting points of view, the depth of characterization, the powerful emotional struggles, were all evident in this film. All in all, a very well done picture, accurately depicting a pivotal battle during the tumultuous era of the Civil War, well worth the time. Best of all, the viewer really doesn't have to be a Civil War authority/nut in order to enjoy it and maybe learn something from it.