Civil War movies bore me. In fact the Civil War bores me as one of the least interesting of wars our country has fought. This is my minority opinion, though, as legions of people recreate the war each year.
Cold Mountain won an Oscar and has been labeled the best film of 2003 by many people. Based on Charles Frazier’s Civil War romance novel, Director Anthony Minghella’s Cold Mountain managed to capture me in a way that no Civil War movie before it has done. Perhaps this is because the Civil War itself is only a background to the real story of finding one's way back to home.
The story follows Jude Law as Inman, an injured solider who decides he's had enough and sets back on the long journey home to someone that means more to him than he might have at first realized. Ada (Nicole Kidman), meanwhile, has struggles of her own, wondering what has become of Inman while attempting to do what men usually do in maintaining a home.
The two stories entertwine with a cast of other colorful characters, including a tomboyish Renee Zellweger who helps Ada and an underprivliged Natalie Portman who needs help from Inman. The twists of life that each of these two lost souls face make for a gripping story that caught my attention from the get-go.
Minghella’s stunning look at 19th century America only makes this film even more enjoyable. If the film has any major fault, it's the weakness in the bond that ties these two souls. Overlooking that small bit of unrealism and it's easy to fall in love with this beautiful film.
The Disc:
Presented on two discs in a Collector's Edition, Cold Mountain looks stunning. An already gorgeous film, the transfer shines in a pristine 2.35:1 widescreen anamorphic presentation. This movie just screams style and look giving it one of the best looking discs to date.
Sounds on the film rock with our beloved DTS. I felt this was one of the best DTS uses in quite a while. I must admit things sound wonderful also with the Dolby Digital 5.1 setting. There's plenty of surround use during the scattered action and battle scenes.
DISC ONE features the film and little more. This is good use as it gives the disc more room for the beauty of the transfer. DISC TWO offers up the bulk of the extras beginning with Feature Commentary with writer/director Anthony Minghella and editor Walter Murch. The commentary here is pretty interesting with plenty of comments that informed me and entertained. Lots of these commentaries sound nervous and unorganized but these guys really gave off a comfortableness.
Next up are a series of features beginning with "Climbing Cold Mountain" (70 mins) a documentary style piece that explores the historical quantity of the film and its impact on the bringing it to life. There's some really interesting material here that seemed to fly by faster than it's seventy minute run time.
Far shorter but still fairly interesting is the behind the scenes feature "A Journey to Cold Mountain" (28 minutes). The film was a massive undertaking, especially when trying to make sure everything was time period sensitive. Nothing here truly remarkable but still interesting.
I am a huge music fan so "Words & Music of Cold Mountain" Royce Hall Special concert (90 minutes) was a real treat. This is possibly the best put together extra on the two disc set. The music in the film is grand and flowing with meaning that this extra exposes.
Next there's an odd extra called "Scared Harp History" which ultimately offers a further look into the musical influences of the movie. Finally there's the deleted scenes and trailers for the film.
bottom line:
A moving film filled with performances to remember. It's easy to see why Renee Zellweger earned an Oscar for her performance. I wouldn't go as far as to call it the best movie of 2003, but it's certainly one of the better.
4.5 out of 5
By - Brian Gray
1/2
