Gods and Generals (2003)
Gods and Generals portrays the Civil War’s Battle of Fredericksburg, from the perspective of the southern leadership. The film is a study of Southern Civil War leaders, centering around Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee and Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, who leave their comfortable existence to lead Confederate units against Union forces. Gods and Generals is praised for its depiction of the Battle of Fredericksburg.
The Battle of Fredericksburg gives Chamberlain experience on the battlefield, but just as important for the film, it sets up its companion film, Gettysburg (1993). Gods and Generals sets Gettysburg up as payback for the defeat at Fredericksburg. But one detail is left out of the film altogether – the Battle of Antietam, which led to Lincoln issuing the Emancipation Proclamation. But this isn’t the most glaring omission from the film.
