davidh's - Top 10 - American Civil War Films List
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Summer 1863. The Confederacy pushes north into Pennsylvania. Union divisions converge to face them. Two great armies will clash at Gettysburg, site of a theology school. For three days, through such legendary actions as Little Round Top and Pickett's Charge, the fate of "one nation, indivisible" hangs in the balance. - Director:
- Ronald F. Maxwell
- Cast:
- Tom Berenger, Gary Gilmore, Martin Sheen
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At the dawn of the Civil War, the men of Cold Mountain, North Carolina, rush to join the Confederate army. Ada (Kidman) has vowed to wait for Inman (Law), but as the war drags on and letters go unanswered, she must find the will to survive. At war's end, hearts will be dashed, dreams fulfilled and the strength of the human spirit tested...but not broken. - Director:
- Anthony Minghella
- Cast:
- Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, Renée Zellweger
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The heart-stopping story of the first black regiment to fight for the North in the American Civil War, "Glory" stars Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes and Morgan Freeman. Broderick and Elqes are the idealistic young Bostonians who led the regiment; Freeman is the inspirational sergeant who unites the troops; and Denzel Washington, in an Oscar-winning performance is the runaway slave who embodies the indomitable spirit of the 54th Regiment of Massachusetts. Despised by the South, distrusted by the North, the 54th overcame seemingly insurmountable odds in their fight to join the war for freedom. Underpaid and ill-equipped, facing certain death at the hands of the Confederacy, the 54th rose to every challenge; their courage, skill and sacrifice paying the way for the Union's ultimate victory. - Director:
- Edward Zwick
- Cast:
- Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes
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The powerful story of a woman who would do anything to protect her family, and the man who risked everything to save her. In the wake of Abraham Lincoln's assassination, seven men and one woman are arrested and charged with conspiring to kill the President, Vice President, and Secretary of State. The lone woman charged, Mary Surratt (Robin Wright) owns a boarding house where John Wilkes Booth (Toby Kebbell) and others met and planned the simultaneous attacks. Against the ominous back-drop of post-Civil War Washington, newly-minted lawyer, Frederick Aiken (James McAvoy), a 28-year-old Union war-hero, reluctantly agrees to defend Surratt before a military tribunal. Aiken realizes his client may be innocent and that she is being used as bait and hostage in order to capture the only conspirator to have escaped a massive manhunt, her own son, John (Johnny Simmons). As the nation turns against her, Surratt is forced to rely on Aiken to uncover the truth and save her life... - Director:
- Robert Redford
- Cast:
- Robin Wright, James McAvoy, Tom Wilkinson
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Epic romantic drama based on Margaret Mitchell's Pulitzer-winning novel set during the American Civil War. Southern belle Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) often uses men to get what she wants, but is unable to get the one man she truly desires, Ashley Wilkes (Leslie Howard). She soon meets her match in the roguish Captain Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) and in the war itself which destroys the genteel way of life she has always known. With determination she rebuilds her life from the shattered remains the Union Army leaves behind. - Director:
- Victor Fleming
- Cast:
- Clark Gable, Vivien Leigh, Thomas Mitchell
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Only once in its history, has the U.S. been at war with itself. In 1861, the Southern Confederacy is formed, and the American civil war ignites. Along the Kansas / Missouri border childhood friends Jake (Tobey Maguire) and Jack (Skeet Ulrich) join up as horseman, raiding the North's Union soldiers and sympathisers. With a harsh winter looming, their unit, known as the Bushwhackers must disperse and find shelter. Several squad members hole up in a hidden hillside dugout. Their vigil is brightened only by a compassionate young widow, Sue Lee (Jewel Kilcher). Then, the realities of the war intrude, splintering the group. In the intense and brutal battle, the young men reach turning points both in the fighting and in themselves. - Director:
- Ang Lee
- Cast:
- Tobey Maguire, Skeet Ulrich, Jewel Kilcher
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From legendary director Steven Spielberg comes this acclaimed, exhilarating historical drama. Daniel Day-Lewis gives a memorable, Oscar-Winning performance as the profoundly influential American president, Abraham Lincoln. During his final turbulent months in office, Lincoln strives to convince war-ravaged America's bitterly divided government to abolish slavery. With fierce, unstoppable courage, Lincoln inspires a decision that will change history forever. - Director:
- Steven Spielberg
- Cast:
- Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, David Strathairn
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Director Ronald F. Maxwell revisits his finest work in this epic prequel to Gettysburg. The American Civil War comes to life as countrymen fight one another in sweeping battle scenes led by men with the courage and conviction to defend their beliefs with their very lives. An Academy Award winning cast including Robert Duvall as General Robert E. Lee, Stephen Lang as "Stonewall" Jackson and Jeff Daniels as Lawrence Chamberlain, give battle on the fields of Virginia, where the armies of the North and South collide. Based on Jeffrey M. Shaara's bestseller, 'Gods and Generals' faithfully recreates the world of 1861 and the strife of a nation at war with itself. - Director:
- Ronald F. Maxwell
- Cast:
- Stephen Lang, Robert Duvall, Jeff Daniels
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A remarkable ensemble of screen legends, including Gregory Peck, Stacy Keach, Lloyd Bridges, Geraldine Page, and Colleen Dewhurst star in one of the most compelling, thoughtful and comprehensive Civil War films ever produced. Based on the works of Bruce Catton. 'The Blue and the Gray' is recognised for its historic accuracy, dramatic intensity and spectacular battle sequences. Filmed entirely on location in Arkansas with over 160 characters and 6,300 extras, this searing saga contains all the stirring conflict and narrative lyricism of such cinematic masterpieces as 'Gone with the Wind' and 'Glory'. The film brilliantly reconstructs an eternally fascinating and controversial era in American history - when families and nation were divided between the black and white, North and South and 'The Blue and the Gray'. - Director:
- Andrew V. McLaglen
- Cast:
- Stacy Keach, John Hammond, Diane Baker
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After avenging his family's brutal murder, Josey Wales (Clint Eastwood) is on the run, pursued by a pack of killers. He travels alone, but a ragtag group of outcasts Laura Lee and Lone Watie (Sondra Locke and Chief Dan George) is drawn to him - and Wales can't leave his motley surrogate family unprotected. - Director:
- Clint Eastwood
- Cast:
- Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Chief Dan George
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