Today's Freep has an item on why no final piece in the Shaara Trilogy, as reported elsewhere. Gary Gallagher has a new book out on the War and the movies. Steven Spielberg says he will start on Lincoln next year coincident with the Bicentennial. All that, plus recent comments here, leads me to noodle a list of good-to-great Hollywood efforts (ranked by memory, not quality, and I'm too lazy to alpha). Note how most actors rank pretty high in the pantheon.
Major Dundee (Charlton Heston)
Dark Command (John Wayne)
Red Badge of Courage (Audie Murphy)
Glory (Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman)
Cold Mountain (Nicole Kidman, Renee Zellwegger)
Gettysburg (Martin Sheen, Jeff Daniels)
Gods and Generals (Robert Duvall, Jeff Daniels)
Santa Fe Trail (Errol Flynn, Raymond Massey, Olivia deHaviland)
Abe Lincoln in Illinois (Raymond Massey)
Young Mr. Lincoln (Henry Fonda)
Gone With The Wind (Clark Gable)
Shenandoah (Jimmy Stewart)
Friendly Persuasion (Gary Cooper)
The Horse Soldiers (John Wayne, William Holden)
Virginia City (Errol Flynn)
They Died With Their Boots On (Errol Flynn, Olivia DeHaviland)
The Tall Target (Dick Powell)
I have favorites but those with Michiganders Daniels and Heston are at the top (naturally).
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