Rating: 
Summary: Not what I expected...but came away MOVED
Review: I lived in the KC area when this was filmed and read newspaper snippets about the production. I was expecting a "docu-drama"
of the Quantrill raid on Lawrence. Living in the area, I'd visited the various historical sites and read the obligatory
bronze placques so I was excited about seeing a movie that
would supposedly flesh out the Lawrence-raid for me.Instead, midway through the movie I was perplexed at why this
was plundering along telling a story about three Missourians
and nothing about Quantrill at all. It wasn't until after the
Lawrence raid scene that I realized that this story was told
brilliantly, and illustrated for us the essence of the time
and circumstances that affected lives for generations. The raid isn't the story, the lives caught up in the quirky
tides of history is the compelling story to be told, and Ang
Lee masterfully captures it... Bottom line, go in without grandiose "Braveheart"'like
expectations, and enjoy important storytelling at its
finest.
Rating:
Summary: The Real War.
Review: Ok I will not bore you with summarizing the plot. All I can say is that if you think this will be like you're granddad's World War 2 movie think again. This is more along the lines of Platoon(ok I may be steeping out on a limb). The characters are many and memorable the action scenes(though few in number in some cases towards the middle) are equally engaging. The soundtrack is also excellent. I most espically like the fact that(unlike in Gettysburg) the directors aren't shy about what a bullet does to the human body. To make it all the more engaging you don't have to know Jack about the civil war to enjoy this movie.
Rating:
Summary: The dark side of war
Review: Ride with the devil was different fromany civil war movie that I had ever seen. Its strat forward and honest. The acting is haunting set to Kansas country side and beautiful music. When I first heard about this film, I couldn't wait to see it, even though I had to drive 40 miles to a small theatre that was showing it, and I gladly wnt again the next day. This movie is beautiful and profound. Highly recomended.
Rating: 
Summary: DVD lends added grandeur to a great movie
Review: Ride With the Devil may not have found its audience in theaters, but it's a great movie, and it was meant to be seen on DVD format! The DVD version of this epic piece of filmmaking by Taiwan-born director Ang Lee focuses on a little-known aspect of the Civil War: the bloody and relentless border skirmishes along the Kansas and Missouri border that began in the 1850s and continued into the 1870s for almost a decade before and a decade after the five-year Civil War ended in 1865. The fighting in these border skirmishes was more like a continuous everyday version of the the modern conflicts in Ireland and the Middle East and even in some US streets ruled by urban gangs.
The armies of the Blue and the Gray were not yet engaged on the battlefields of the south and the east when these young Missouri men took up their hunting rifles and turned them on the occupying Union army. The resulting warfare created such lingering hatreds that author Daniell Woodrell, (who wrote the book on which the movie is based), said martial law was declared in three counties years after the war. The movie's main characters are unusual choices to depict this bloody, hatred-fueled "battle to the knife, and knife to the hilt" conflict: They are teenaged boys, southern-sympathizing "Bushwhackers." They took turns with pro-Union, Kansas-based "Jayhawkers" to stage retaliatory raids. Such a conflict was no place for middle ground, and yet that is just where lead character Tobey Maguire finds himself, as the son of a German immigrant. Such immigrants were distrusted because many of them favored an almost fascist-strong central government. Maguire's character, Jake "Dutchy" Roedel, is barely tolerated because he is the best friend ("near-brother") of loyal good old boy and former rich old boy, Jack Bull Chiles (Skeet Ulrich). The two grew up together, so when Jack Bull's father is killed by Jayhawkers, Jake ignores his own father and joins with Jack Bull.
to battle them. Jake's father's words warning him that he would never be accepted among the Bushwhackers often comes to haunt him as he is singled out for suspicion, especially by a viscious fellow Bushwhacker, Pitt Mackeson, chillingly portrayed by Irish actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers. His gorgeous smile appears in this movie only when Pitt Mackeson is shooting someone. In the movie's best performance, Jeffrey Wright portrays another outsider in the Bushwhacker camp: a freed slave who remains loyal to fight alongside the man who freed him. As the war goes on, this quiet fighter begins to realize that even loyalty has its limits in the face of overwhelming wrongdoing. In the DVD version of the story, you get to see more wide-shots of the Bushwhackers in camp and feel the boredom and lonliness that must have been part of camp life. In one scene, the men are transfixed by the reading of a Wisconsin mother's captured letter to her sons. The spectacular chase scenes, with their unusual perspectives and sense of urgency, are heart-thumping action.
These scenes record to perfection and with great timing the skilled horseback riding and fancy gunplay in which Bushwhackers exchange weaponry on the run. Viewers may gain an appreciation for how the landscape of the early 1860s so vastly differed from anything we recognize today, and how it was possible for hundreds of armed soldiers on horses to travel 45 miles across enemy territory to execute one of the most brutal terrorist acts of the 19th century: The slaughter by Bushwhackers of 150 old men and young boys on an August morning in Lawrence, Kansas. The movie has its flaws.
It is almost 3 hours long, and it lags toward the middle.
Although Skeet Ulrich is billed as the movie's star, both he and first-time actress Jewel Kelcher turn in mannered performances. Still, if you enjoy Jewel's singing, you will love the video extra of her singing her song, "Simple is True," based on a brief love affair.
It's a bit syrupy, but the visuals are nice. Don't read the forced and unmetered lyrics, as they make little sense. The worst thing about this DVD is the total lack of any other bonus material of any note.
No live interviews on the set. No comments or insights about filming from the director.
Another cheat: The cast list does list all the major players, so if you click on a name, some written "filmography" material pops up. BUT that only happens for a few! Some production notes provide interesting insights into how the raid on Lawrence and other scenes were staged, and some of the filming difficulties, but again...no real interviews. Still, if you want to see some rousing story-telling about a pivotal time in American history, this DVD is well worth it.
Rating: 
Summary: Realistic Civil War violence, but so what?
Review: This is a tale of skirmishes between gangs of young men who see the reason to kill and pillage as justified because the other side "wants to change our way of life". If this was meant as an anti-war movie, it succeeded as such for me, but I don't believe that was the director's intention. The cinematography is very well done, the acting is certainly favorable, and the character development is adquate, but the movie drags on endlessly. I'm sure this is an excellent composite of the skirmishes in the "border states" at the start of the Civil War, but I'm not sure what the message we can bring away from it is. Realism for the sake of realism doesn't justify the making of this movie. Well drawn "trees", unfocused "forest".
Rating:
Summary: Beautifully acted, written and filmed
Review: This is one of the most moving films I have seen in a long time. The scenery and camera shots alone are worth the viewing, but the acting is just as phenomenal. It is an easy paced story about a very disturbing time in our nations history. Toby Maguire is able to communicate so much, even with the small amount of speaking that he does. Jewel was the dark horse of this movie, proving that she's not only talented in music but has a definate flare for acting as well. If you are at all intrigued by history, I definately recommend you see this film.
Rating:
Summary: WELL WORTH WATCHING
Review: This film has stuff for everyone. For guys it has action, adventure and suspense. For the gals, it is also a love story set in tragic surroundings. It is also one of the few films that stays away from the usual stereotyping of the Southernors of the 1860s. It also shows that Blacks fought for the South. And not as ignorant slaves. Yes it shows the bigotry of some. But, also that some Confederate Soldiers were against slavery. And they were fighting for states rights.
Rating:
Summary: "Oh, what a horrible fate!"
Review: It was a horrible fate how quickly this truly terrific movie disappeared from theaters in 1999. It even failed to find an arthouse audience! A real shame. The Amazon review is correct- this movie truly does transport you back in time to the Missouri-Kansas border during the Civil War. I think others have ably described the plot so I'll focus on things that stood out for me. One thing that really caught my eye was how for once a period film actually attempted to show who really fights in wars: young men. The majority of the actors in this film are in their early twenties which is the age of the average combat soldier. Most war movies star actors who are generally well past the age allowable for combat duty. (As much as I loved "Saving Private Ryan," Tom Hanks was a little bit long in the tooth to be considered a realistic Ranger captain.) Civil War films are even worse in representing the age of a typical soldier mainly due to their reliance on filling out scenes with re-enactors. Yes, it's great re-enactors work for free and provide their own costumes and weapons, but Civil War armies were not made-up of overweight, middle-aged men. The average age of a Confederate soldier was about 20 yrs old, and "Ride with the Devil" shows the truth- that the men who did most of the killing and dying in that war were mere youths. As another reviewer pointed out, this really strikes home when Toby McGuire's Jake, a hardened Confederate guerrilla, reveals his age. The performances are uniformly excellent across the board. (Look out for former child actors Thomas Guiry ("Lassie" and "The Sandlot") and Jonathan Brandis ("Sidekicks" and "Ladybugs") in supporting roles. Brandis as Cave Wyatt is almost unrecognizable with his long hair, full beard, and southern accent.) However, one performance really stands out- Jonathan Rhys-Meyers' chilling Pitt Mackeson. Mackeson represents the young men of Missouri who grew up during the unrest of the "Bleeding Kansas" days and came of age when that unrest exploded into largescale, murderous violence during the Civil War. Violence is a way of life for Mackeson. Eventually, "the Cause" becomes less important to him than indulging in the anything goes lawlessness of the Missouri-Kansas border. Remember this is how Jesse and Frank James came of age. The Irish Rhy-Meyers rivets the viewer's attention whenever he is onscreen. This should of have been a star making turn for the then 22 yr old, but since no one saw "Ride with the Devil" it didn't happen. I'm a huge Civil War buff so maybe I enjoyed this movie more than a non-history buff would. It can be slow moving and the highly stylized and polite dialogue of the characters can be a little off-putting- "And when do you figure on doing this mean thing to me, Mackeson? Is this very moment convenient for you? It sure is for me." But it truly is a terrific Civil War film despite the fact that it's only about a vicious sideshow of that catastrophic war- "Armies and battles? That's all back east. Down here in Missouri you just got the people to fight ya." If you enjoy period films then I highly recommend "Ride with the Devil" for a trip back in time.
Rating:
Summary: A great film
Review: It was cinematically stunning. It was a compelling story, well told and performed. But the moment that really broke my heart was not the moment when we lost a good man to a bad cause (two of those, with Jack and George), but the moment when Jake Roedel is faced with starting a new life with his new bride. "Are you a virgin?" she asks. He replies, "Girl, I've killed 15 men." And she softly laughs. This does not make him a man. Bedding women does not make a boy a man, either. Jake's manhood was a matter of courage, loyalty and responsibility, all of which he demonstrated admirably at every challenge. But something about that moment, between a young man and woman who had been through too much, really shook me. And then the next scene was Jake having a shave and a haircut. And he didn't look 19 (which he barely was), he looked 14. Jesus God. I can't add a thing to that.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but not great
Review: I don't understanding the gushing reviews given this film. This is an entertaining period film. It is unusual and meritorious only because it doesn't treat the Conferderates as evil incarnate. The cinematography is especially pleasing. The story line is unimaginative and typical superficial action-adventure. The working in of an important black character among the Confederate irregulars is a silly artifice that can only be an excuse to treat the Southern cause with a measure of sympathy. Many of the characters in the film are shallow stereotypes. Actually, this film is 31/2 star material, but I bumped it up because it has the courage to treat the Confederates with a measure of sympathy and respect. A better film about the conflict as it took place in the West is Clint Eastwood's The Outlaw Josey Wales--now that is a five star film.
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