|
 |
|
|
Home The Saga Archives Wild Geese Shops Bookstore Classifieds Heritage Key Dates Events WGT Forum Gallery Lands of Exile Living History Resources Bibliography Guest Book Contact WGT About Us
PROUD SPONSORS OF WGT:
Military Heritage Tours: Your guided tour to Ireland's Battlefields and Military Heritage. For the latest headlines about "Bloody Sunday" and Northern Ireland, visit Newshound, at Nuzhound.com
VISIT THESE OTHER FINE IRISH SITES:
Tara Hall, Headquarters for 'Fighting 69th' and Irish
Brigade Memorabilia, online at Fighting69th.com.
Irish
Culture and Customs: Traditions, folklore, and more.
|
By G. Leslie Sweetnam
Sadly, there is very little period music in "Gods and Generals," even though Maxwell had on the film set over months of filming dozens of fine musicians who would work for nearly nothing, who brought their own period garb and their own unique passion and feel for the Civil War, and who could give some of the fine lesser-known tunes the familiarity of "Dixie." What we do find by way of music: The character Lucy Beale plays piano in her Fredericksburg parlor, but it is a classical piece. Why choose Mozart over Stephen Foster, the era's most popular songwriter, for a Civil War movie? A single fifer leads the boys of Virginia Military Institute out after "Stonewall" Jackson, the film's centerpiece, in what could have been a powerful scene. Less is not always more.
"Bonnie Blue Flag" is performed for the big minstrel-show production number, but the choice seems odd as such shows were designed as entertainments, and the men knew the song by heart at that time in the war. (A movie insider explained that the singer was portraying Harry McCarthy, the song's lyricist, introducing the song to the troops, which actually occurred in September of '61. (The tune of "Bonnie Blue Flag" is "Irish Jaunting Car.") I'm not so bothered by the anachronism, but couldn't one soldier have turned to another and enlightened us with "Say,
A band with period instruments greets Mrs Jackson's train with -- can you possibly guess? -- "Dixie." So many lost opportunities! The film could have borrowed any of the following tidbits from the war's history or even from the film's own DVD: * "Battles" of Confederate and Federal bands that took place across the Rappahanock during the war would have added some desperately needed humor to the movie. * Men singing wicked parodies of their enemies' most sacred songs since we watched so much marching. Except when sneaking up on the enemy, the men often sang on the march to encourage themselves or to ease the boredom. * Federal and Confederate soldiers joining together from across the lines on "Home Sweet Home" or "Tenting Tonight." * The parlor pianinst leading one of the many songs that helped trigger the tears lurking beneath the surface of so many of the participants in the war. * Any acoustic music, with or without singing, near or distant, familiar or not, in any of the many evening camp scenes would not have added a minute to the movie. * Any of the "bonus footage" (except the Chamberlains' bland duet). And speaking of the professor, he wrote powerfully and eloquently of the sounds of the wounded on the night field before the stone wall but I heard nary a groan in that scene. There is so much of a setting that we cannot get from a film. We can see but not smell the wood smoke. We see the breath and the snow, but cannot feel the cold or the wind. We hear but cannot feel the shock of the blast. Sound is so important because it is one of only two senses that movies play to. Tremendous advances have been made in its recording and delivery. For example, we
The finest orchestral score cannot stand in for the sounds and the music that should be in the scene, in front of the camera. Maxwell's understands this -- he said as much in his CD liner notes. But he fails to put his words into action in "Gods and Generals." Perhaps moviemakers should sit through each others' films blindfolded that they might understand how little they provide the sense of hearing. In any movie, it is a sad omission. In a movie about the American Civil War, it is tragic. Pray they do better if they make "Last Full Measure." If you've made it this far, you may be as depressed as I am, and so here's something to cheer you. David Kincaid's sequel to "The Irish Volunteer" may be released as soon as May. It will have six Union and six Confederate, newly researched Irish songs -- back from the archival grave, they are. It will be called "The Irish-American's Song," and news of its coming will be updated at Haunted Field Music. I look forward to reviewing it here.
E-mail us for more information about The Wild Geese Today
Copyright © 2003, GAR Media. |
G. Leslie Sweetnam is a member of the 27th Connecticut Volunteers Civil War re-enactment unit. His folk music roots go back to the turbulent 60s (1960s, that is) and he has been playing banjo and singing Civil War and Irish songs for more years than he probably wants to think about. Leslie keeps himself busy making a fine line of bentwood wall, table and floor lamps. He is also available to do a first-person portrayals of the life of a Civil War soldier, complete with music, for schools or any interested organization. A top-notch pilot, Leslie has recently launched an aerial photography business. Learn more about Leslie's varied wares at 
Jeff Shaara, right, explores the lives of Generals Lee, Hancock, Jackson and Chamberlain as the pivotal Battle of Gettysburg approaches. Shaara captures the disillusionment of both Lee and Hancock early in their careers, Lee's conflict with loyalty, Jackson's overwhelming Christian ethic and Chamberlain's total lack of experience, while illustrating how each compensated for shortcomings and failures when put to the test. The perspectives of the four men, particularly concerning the battles at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, make vivid the realities of war. Buy GODS AND GENERALS at 
