Patton

Rating:
Summary: If only all bio-pics were this good.
Review: 'Patton: Lust for Glory' is a wonderful movie - a real warts and all job. It shows him as a Prima Donna: vain, arrogant, bullying; but also brilliant, brave, cultured. A very strange, complex man. Full credit should go to the men responsible for making the film such an artistic success: The director Franklin J Schaffner, the scriptwriter Francis Ford Coppala, and, of course, George C. Scott who starred as Patton. George C Scott was awarded a well-deserved Oscar for his performance. He turned it down, saying that life wasn't a race. What a superb gesture?

If only all bio-pics were this good. I only wish it had been more influential. We rarely get bio-pics as good as this any more. Gibson's lamentable take on the William Wallace story is a good example. Even Jordan's 'Michael Collins' was a missed opportunity. Here is a list of bio-pics I would like to see made, but only if they are as good as 'Patton': Giuseppe Garibaldi, Thomas Paine, Thomas Jefferson, Teddy Roosevelt, Salvador Allende, Oliver Cromwell, John Lilburne, Leadbelly, Robert Johnson, Charles Mingus, Ho Chi Minh, Che Guevara, & loads of others. I guess I won't hold my breath.

Rating:
Summary: The Misunderstood General
Review: The first time I saw this movie was on a firebase in Vietnam of all places. The times were "anti-war" when the movie was made (1970)George C. Scott gave the performance of his life in this movie and it is probably the best mixture of war and character study I have ever seen. The movie protrayed Patton as a war monger which is a misinterpretation of his real nature. He was a General a true warrior and new his military history from the dawn of time. In the beginning of the movie he takes over III Corps which was in diseray from the humiliateing loss at Kasserine Pass. He HAD to be tough to get those men back in fighting condition. Near the end of the film when his 3rd Army is racing accross Europe you can see that although his men feared him and some thought him crazy they wanted no one else leading him. Patton once said that at the end of every war we have been involved with, we have always left something undone. He was right and we fought a "cold war" with Russia for 50 years. If you read the book that the movie was "based on" you'd find that the amphifious assault that he ordered in Sicily was a brillant tactical menuver that caught the Germans off guard and probably saved thousands of Americans lives. In the movie he ordered it just to get to Medina before Montgomery. The historical facts are accurate, the acting is superb but the accuracy of Patton ideals are ficion.

Rating:
Summary: Classic Telling of a true event!
Review: This is by far one of the best movies made. Along with "The Last Days Of Patton" they make a great gift and also an educational item. If you never have seen this movie, you're missing a great story.

Rating:
Summary: A portrait of Patton
Review: Seems like George Patton was portrayed, in the movie, as a charismatic, strong willed and an effective leader with a mouth to boot..!! I believe the light shed on him showed that he cared for the men who gave 110% for him and his country yet loathed and despised a man for his apparent weakness to fake injury or show any sign of what he called 'cowardness'.

Unfortunately, men like these are bound to have faults. His were apparent. All to eager to mouth-off to everyone and anyone more often than not got him into trouble. As he said, he's not there to make friends...he's there to fight..!!

It was a good movie showing him as a person and how he 'ticked' and it also showed his understanding of war and how it worked. His apparent "previous life" captured a sense of destiny which is something I haven't seen in a movie before. He forever seemed determined to right the wrongs of the world and was completely convinced that he was the man to do it. His almost obsessive nature on the history of previous wars played a major part, for
his role, in the film.

On the German side there showed some lieutenants of the Fuehrer ( pardon all the spelling ) continuously going over past wars attempting to second guess Patton and kill both the British and Americans. I am intrigued as to whether this is a known fact of for purely 'motion picture' reasons ?

I will admit I didn't think the movie was all that good but I guess it wasn't a movie about war, rather a movie about the character of George Patton and his own battle within a war and how he himself overcame it with the help of his own troops.

Overall, an excellent portrait of George Patton. 4/5 from me.

Rating:
Summary: Can Great Men Emerge from Modern Warfare?
Review: PATTON is the combination of authentic biography and excellent war film-making. It engages in breath-taking character development of a prominent figure in American military history, and does so without romanticizing the character. Twenty-first century movie-goers will notice that some scenes betray the age of the picture, but its message is very much for our time.

Despite being filmed during the Vietnam War, PATTON does not feature the anti-war rhetoric that has handicapped almost every Hollywood war movie since. This movie concentrates on casting General George S. Patton as he really was -- an inspiring leader and a colorful character. Yet in doing so, it does not shy away from pointing out how the spicy language and gruff persona that so successfully spurred soldiers into battle often held him back in a world uncomfortable in grappling with larger-than-life individuals.

Here the myth is debunked that modern warfare tactics prevent the emergence of great men. PATTON provides a refreshing break from current revisionist trends among history academics that de-emphasize the role of individuals and dismiss the importance of military history in the affairs of humanity. While Patton certainly existed and was responsible for landmark Allied victories against the Nazis, Patton is the solid kind of figure a history professor in the average American university would try to hide from impressionable undergraduate students.

PATTON presents an interesting question to those of us in the modern world: we need men of war to win battles, but can we be tolerant of the military culture in times of peace? Patton's life suggested that the answer to this question was advancing towards the negative even in the 1940's. How farther popular culture in the West has gone in reinforcing this contempt for those that fight to defend our freedom! If a commanding officer in today's American military shared Patton's fire and unabashed cultural conservatism, would he have even made it to the rank of general?

In short, PATTON is an inspiring film about individualism in an age of increasing collectivism. In the famous Stars and Stripes scene, Patton says that "Americans will not tolerate a loser." Unfortuanately, Americans that adopt the political correctness of the 21st century are also becoming increasingly intolerant of the individual. But then again, Patton also made it clear that he was only talking about "real Americans."

Rating:
Summary: Patton: One of the greatest best pictures
Review: Patton goes without saying as one of the best films of all time, so I won't elaborate on that.
I wish to talk about thre ... bad reviews. One gave the DVD a bad review because his DVD player on his COMPUTER would not run, another gave a bad review due to the fact that it was not fullscreen! "I'm sure there are some people out there that like having their screen reduced down in size but I don't and it just seems like everyone that I talk to feels the same as me." Yeah Right!... you get less with fullscreen! The colors and proportions are off! Reduced in size... rubbish... And finally, someone thought that 'The Last Days of Patton' was actually part of 'Patton'!!! He thought he was being cheated!
....
BUY THIS DVD!

Rating:
Summary: George C. Scott as George S. Patton
Review: I knew that George C. Scott was a good actor, but you will never realize exactly how great he is until you see this film. After seeing pictures of General Patton, it is hard to image the general without thinking of the actor.

There is some German and French in the movie, but there are subtitles or someone translating for you. There is not enough to detract from the movie, but there is enough to keep the movie authentic.

This was not a war movie meant to build up the general as larger than life. Here, you see not only the fire of Patton, but the pathos of a man trying to succeed in a world that he wasn't born for. In the movie, they point out that he seemed to be ready for the sixteenth century. He also mentions that he was at many of the historical battles. With his extensive reading, I do not doubt it. Although he tries to play politics, he really isn't ready for it. His forte is battle and seeing him held from it hurts the viewer as well as Patton.

I did like the ending of him walking his dog, but I was expecting the rest of the movie. I do not know why it was omitted.

I would strongly recommend this movie.

Rating:
Summary: The definitive war movie!
Review: I've watched movies about WWII for years, and I've never seen one that is quite as good as Patton. George C. Scott defines his career with this movie, and the oscars it has garnered are well deserved. This movie goes into depth on the life and leadership skills of George Patton, 4 star general that led the Allies to victory in North Africa, Sicily, and ultimately on the beaches of Normandy. Based on real life events in Patton's life, this movie shows you in-depth how this legendary warrior was at the center of the effort to defeat the Germans. He is alternately a pious and prayerful man, and then a few moments later is using profanity like a sailor. He is beligerent and yet loved by his men. Patton was a true hero, and this movie follows him each step of the way, showing both the man and the hero.

You know a movie is good when you want to sit down and watch one or two scenes that have become your favorites, or you find youself quoting lines from the movie long after it's over. I find myself doing both with this movie, especially the initial speech given by Patton while standing in front of an American flag (see the cover of the DVD).

If you haven't seen this movie, then you're in for a treat. If you have seen it, watch it again. It gets better each time you see it.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome DVD with excellent features
Review: Fans of this film will love the DVD. It has an extra DVD with a behind the scenes documentary, timelines, music score, etc. The quality of the film is top-notch. This movie remains the greatest military bio-pic of all time, and a must for WWII fans.

Rating:
Summary: Old Blood and Guts
Review: Let me start out by saying that I loved this movie! I am in the eight grade,and I first saw this movie because I had to do a project over him. I thought that it was going to be a nightmare, but then once I saw this movie I loved General George Patton. I easily watched this movie six times! I think "Old Blood and Guts" is a very cool man, and everyone should learn about him. I have now been finding information over him for the last couple of months, even though my project ended four years ago! I think that everyone from ages seven(7) to age eighty(80) should read this book rather if you have to or not!!!!