Patriot, The Buy Patriot, The from my web shop

(- 2000 -)

Original Title Patriot, The Director Roland Emmerich Genre Action, Drama, War Released 2000-06-27 MPAA Rating Rated R for strong war violence. Rated 6.9

Plot Summary

The movie takes place in South Carolina in 1776. Benjamin Martin, a French-Indian war hero who is haunted by his past, is a patriot who wants no part in a war with Britian. Meanwhile, his two eldest sons, Gabriel and Thomas, can't wait to go out and kill some Redcoats. When South Carolina decides to go to war with Britain, Gabriel immediatly signs up to fight...without his father's permission. But soon, Colonel Tavington, British solder infamous for his brutal tactiks, captures Gabriel and sentences him to be hanged. As Gabriel is taken away, Thomas tries to free him, only to be killed by Tavington, in front of Benjamin. Now, seeking revenge for his son's death, Benjamin leaves behind his 5 other children to bring independence to the 13 colonies.

Images

Actors / Character

Mel Gibson as Benjamin Martin , Heath Ledger as Gabriel Martin , Joely Richardson as Charlotte Selton , Jason Isaacs as William Tavington , Chris Cooper as Harry Burwell , Tchéky Karyo as Jean Villeneuve , Rene Auberjonois as Rev. Oliver , Lisa Brenner as Anne Patricia Howard , Tom Wilkinson as Charles Cornwallis , Donal Logue as Dan Scott , Leon Rippy as John Billings , Adam Baldwin as Capt. Wilkins , Jay Arlen Jones as Occam , Joey D. Vieira as Peter Howard , Gregory Smith as Thomas Martin

IMDB User Comments

Rousing, vigorous, with the strength and conviction of Mel Gibson's performance and the realism of the battle sequences. ***1/2 (out of four) THE PATRIOT / (2000) ***1/2 (out of four) "The Patriot" is a rousing, vigorous Revolutionary War epic from the view point of a family full of vengeance and strong wills. Mel Gibson reprises his "Braveheart" characteristics for a production that shares many common factors, such as frequent and graphic battle sequences that are persuasive, personal, and tragic. He stars as a widower named Benjamin Martin, who contains fond memories of his late wife and is raising several children on a South Carolina estate in 1776. Of course, he is haunted by deep secrets in his past and is an expert on the French and Indian war. King George's taxation without representation is the subject of conflict here, and although Martin believes the policy to be unjust, he wants nothing to do with supporting war with the British. Benjamin's oldest son, Gabriel (Heath Ledger in an overzealous performance), goes against his father's strong intentions and joins the rebellion by enlisting as a soldier in the war. Soon a wounded Gabriel returns to his father's plantation as a battle occurs in the front of their livelihood, and the diabolically cruel Col. William Tavington (Jason Isaacs) orders the novice solider to be hanged. In fury one of Benjamin's other children (Gregory Smith from "Small Soldiers") is killed for interrupting the process, compliments of Tavington. Naturally this action triggers an impulse within Benjamin whose rage causes him to switch to battle mode and, with the help of his two younger sons, ambushes the party in charge of Gabriel's hanging. Benjamin then takes up arms against the British and is given the command of a militia. With the help of French warrior Jean Villeneuve (Tcheky Karyo), he marks a full-throated revenge against the man who killed his son, and who changed his previous life. The film is fond of bridging on emotions such as love, patriotism and betrayal. These emotions are true to the story, and relate well with the audience. There is also some mild comic relief, revolving around simple-minded misunderstandings and character traits. Mel Gibson's "Braveheart" similarly portrayed such humor to ease the tension. But in a movie with as much human depth and tragic occurrences as "The Patriot," why would the filmmakers want to induce chuckles. They only decrease the seriousness of the subject matter-although the production is careful not to tread over its head in laughs and foolishness. I did see a few excessively familiar clichés within the material of "The Patriot"; how many times do we really need to see a father raising his children on his own because his spouse passed away a few years earlier. In lesser films I can see where their dim-minded writers would purchase this concept from the marketplace of customary clichés, but when I witness this particular mechanical abstraction in a movie with as much power as this, it is really shameful and sticks out like a sore thumb. What really propels "The Patriot" from being a good movie to being a great movie is the strength and conviction of Mel Gibson's performance and the realism of the battle sequences. Especially in war epics, Gibson is capable of portraying characters of flamboyance and passion, while at the same time can drive the film's many action scenes into excitement and thrills; not many actors can do that, but Mel Gibson can.

CD Label