INITIAL "GODS AND GENERALS" REACTION: You know, I can't help but think that a movie like "Gods And Generals" that attempts to interpret the Civil War as a national tragedy whose combatants--on both sides--are worthy of being remembered and understood, and tries to make the Southern perspective part of a larger American history--tries to give both sides equal standing and in effect makes the War accessible to all Americans, as something that happened to all Americans, where the South's perspective is an American perspective, as much as the North's was--is about a million times more constructive than the playing-to-Northeastern-vanity morally superior "Just say slavery"* mindset that I think was behind many of the negative reviews G&G got. Maybe I'm engaging in political fantasy here as much as the "It was all slavery. Yep." types, but I like my tragic War Between The States fantasy way better than the Virtuous North Beats Racist South fantasy, because it is (ironically, I guess) that much less divisive. I don't see the point in continuing the demonization of an entire region of the country. Besides, how can you not love a movie with the stones to have a twelve-minute intermission in the year 2003? See it somewhere with free refills.

*--From that Simpsons episode where Apu take his citizenship test and one of the questions asks for the reason for the Civil War and Apu gives a bunch including slavery. But slavery is the right answer. Thus, "Just say slavery."