The Good, the Bad and the Bullsnot.

    There are so few films depicting the Revolutionary War that it’s hard to criticize them. I knew one day I would have to give my review of The Patriot, starring Mel Gibson, but I have put it off for a long time. Before I begin, I need to put forth the disclaimer that I own this film and sometimes will leave it running in the background while I do other things. It’s a little like an alcoholic turning to mouthwash in desperation. “Hi, I’m Dan and I am an 18^th Century addict”--admitting your problem is the first step, right?

     From a film critic’s point of view, The Patriot is a dodgy movie. It has an uneven script with overly villainous villains, pacing problems, and a tendency to shift from soppy sentimentality to vicious brutality. Many of the faults fall right in the lap of director Roland Emerich, whom you might remember from such campy sci-fi romps as The Day After Tomorrow or Independence Day. Why you would hire an over-the-top Hessian sci-fi director to tell the story of America’s birth is beyond me. The best things about The Patriot as a film are the talented cast, beautiful cinematography, and excellent score by John Williams. These elements save this film, to the extent it can be saved.

    From an historian’s point of view, this film is a nightmare. The problems range from inaccurate costuming choices (apparently we viewers are too stupid to understand anything but red and blue uniforms) to complete butchery of battles, motivations, morals and actions. To enumerate the errors would take as long as the war itself. The problems may have begun when they took what was originally a script about Patriot hero Francis Marion and decided to improve history through re-writing, but it’s hard to say when the first big blunder occurred. You could argue that they made their changes to make a better story, but the results are something like making a film of 9-11 with Italian Hijackers. The meaning of the history is lost, and our understanding is compromised. I know I am being hard on what is, in fact, simply an entertainment. Still, a film such as this bears a certain responsibility. Many people take their only knowledge of Revolutionary War history from some dim distant grade school memories and whatever they see in this film. In fact, because we have no photographs or recordings from the 18^th century, a film like The Patriot will actually have a more powerful place in people’s memories than all the hours spent learning in school. So I beg you, if you watch this movie, treat the history in it like perfume and not fine wine; sniff, don’t swallow.

     I will be watching The Patriot again, of course. After all, I’m addicted to the 18^th century; I can complain about the air all I want, but what else is there to breathe?

Reviewed by Dan Shippey    Breed's Hill Institute     October  2009