Tony
Really enjoyed it, created the atmosphere and general feeling of the period without transposing modern morals or standards. It's the lesser known story of the U.S. civil war, the irregulars. This was the dirty war within a war what we'd now call guerilla or even terrorist attacks. Some certain notorious characters of the west did their apprenticeships in these groups. Did seem to lag a little midway, but it might have been to introduce new players, and give more depth to others. This the cast performed excellently, direction was good but maybe editing could have been more incisive.
SnoopyStyle
Jake Roedel (Tobey Maguire) and Jack Bull Chiles (Skeet Ulrich) are friends in Missouri. Before the Civil War starts, Jack's father is killed by Jayhawkers. During the war, Jake and Jack have joined up with Black John (Jim Caviezel) and his band of Bushwhackers. The group includes Pitt Mackeson (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) who has it in for Jake from an Union Dutch family, George Clyde (Simon Baker) and his trusted negro companion Daniel Holt (Jeffrey Wright). They are helped by widow Sue Lee Shelley (Jewel).This movie captures the familiar close knit nature of this Civil War backwaters. It is not a thrill a minute. When the violence comes, it is brutal and uncompromising. It is the cross current that most fascinates me. There are some heroes but not everyone act heroically. The moral murkiness is the most compelling part of the movie. This gets across a feeling of Band of Brothers. The Lawrence Kansas raid is amazing but that's the exception. This is a morally complicated conflict brought to life. There is no easy patriotism here. "It ain't right and it ain't wrong. It just is."
Wizard-8
I was interested in "Ride with the Devil", because it promised to focus on one aspect of the American Civil War that hasn't been depicted a great deal of times in other Civil War movies, the Bushwackers who were independent of the Confederate army and who raided the north. But in the end, I found the movie to be greatly uneven. On the positive side, the movie feels authentic, from the props and costumes to the locations chosen. The acting by all the players is also professional and helps sell the characters the actors play. On the other hand, the screenplay misses some key moments that might have given the characters more detail. For instance, we see precious little of the hero before the incident that pushes him to be a raider, and then the movie skips a year ahead to show him in midstream. A bigger problem is that the movie is too long. While the movie never gets to the point of being boring, it seems to be taking its sweet time during many moments. The movie also ends at a point that kind of leaves its characters hanging; I would have liked to have seen a more definite resolution. This is not an awful movie, but it's greatly uneven, and I can understand why despite its strengths, the major Hollywood studio that bankrolled the movie in the end only gave it a limited theatrical release.
zombie134
I watched this film at random on Netflix. I knew nothing about it and picked it at random. I watched the film all the way to the end and felt pretty much unmoved. I kinda just thought "Umm OK..." When it finished I was curious to see what IMDb fans thought about it. I was quit surprised and see this film is another movie mis-reviewed by it's fans who chime in at how great and wonderful it is while regular people watch it and then go on with their lives. I mean by reading some of these reviews you would think this film puts Casablanca to shame and makes One Flew Over Cuckoos Nest look like an episode of Three's Company. The "Best Film Ever Made" 10/10! Really? This film had some of the great things over reviewers harped about. Attention to detail, historical accuracy, a daring screenplay about little know Civil War events, brutal violence........but, the movie was boring. If I want all those things I watch the history channel or catch a documentary. This movie seemed to suffer from identity syndrome in the end it could no less than be summed up as period drama...very BBC period drama.The violence, although harsh, was few and far between. The story was straightforward but at the core very uninteresting. I watched a movie to be entertained.The casting feel short here I think. Drama is all about a good story and acting. Toby Maguire is at best a good supporting actor but a lead in an epic drama? Wow no way. From the beginning of the film to the very end his character shows emotion. Does he cry, laugh a lot, rage, joke around...nope. We are left unmoved. Little Big Man was a period drama/comedy with a great actor at the helm. Sorry Tobey.In the end just an OK film. Don't let the fanboys fool you. Mildly entertaining at best for the aesthetics and the spotty violence. Yes historically accurate but really...who cares?
AD
