56 of 72 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Pre-mortem comment, December 6, 2007
Been waiting for this DVD to come out since first seeing it in the theatres- and having since read several histories about the historical event. There already have been numerous website slugfests about just how accurate the movie is, with most of the debate just re-emphasizing how, 150 years later, the Mormon community still struggles to reconcile this documented part of their church history.
But before the DVD is even released, and before the anticipated subsequent storm of prejudiced-laced customer "reviews" ( and it doesn't even matter which side they are for), let me just say that the "editorial review" summary ought to at least introduce the topic fairly. For one, it is hardly an issue of uncertainty whether or not Mormons participated in the massacre- indeed, the valid histories (even the source work by Juanita Brooks, herself a devout Mormon)all confirm that Mormons did most of the killing, and even eventually owned-up to that, but only after years of trying to pawn it off on the Paiute Indians. I've seen the movie and read the histories, and the only aspect of the movie which is somewhat "over-the-top" is its clear portrayal of Brigham Young as a main architect of the massacre; the available histories at least conclude that there is some doubt as to his actual role. Whether viewers of the movie liked the love story subplot or not isn't really what this movie is about, after all....it's just a cinematic technique used to make the history more personal (much like Cameron did with "Titanic", and Kate Winslett and Leonard DiCaprio).
But having said that, I'm sure the DVD release of this movie will again spark all the prejudicial comments about Mormons, etc.....but none of that changes the facts, and the movie does a fair job with that. But don't believe me- don't believe ANY reviewer: read the published histories, then you decide.
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35 of 46 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not the best; not the worst, January 9, 2008
Surprised to see this film currently has a rating of 4.5 stars. I guess Mormon advocates haven't realized this item is up and open for comments. Glad I can get mine in before the comment wars begin. I liked the movie overall. As a professor of religion I know the story accords with historical facts of the Mountain Meadows massacre as well as we know them. It truly does show how human beings can do the most atrocious things to one another if they believe they receive the blessing of God in doing so. I would only wish they ask some basic epistemological questions about the justification of their claim to knowledge that it is God they are truly hearing. The film mentions possible motives like the belief the federal government was about to start a war against the Mormons and payback for the murder of Joseph Smith in Missouri. One explanation for the massacre the film does not address but needs to be explored is using religious justification for plain old greed. There was a lot of wealth, cattle and horses with that wagon train. The Paiutes didn't get it. Who did? The film nicely points out how John Lee is the only Mormon forced to suffer penalty for the event. As for the film itself, it is beautifully filmed. I thought the Davidovich character was shallow, and her death is left unexplained. The real clinker in the film, though, and the reason I reduce its rating to a three star, is the clumsily melodramatic love affair between the son of the Mormon Bishop and the daughter of the wagon train's minister. As part of that story you have the son being imprisoned by the Bishop by being chained at the ankle in a barn. The chain, though, is around his boot. Why doesn't the kid just remove his foot from the boot? That's the kind of silliness that creeps in when you import melodrama into this tragic story. My greatest concern: The Mormons (with the exception of the lovestruck son of the Bishop) were uniformly caricatured as the embodiment of hate, while those on the wagon train were uniformly portrayed as the embodiment of sweetness and light. That's too simple-minded an approach. There are other comments to be made, but I don't want to turn this into a lecture on religion. Good film, but not great by any stretch.
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21 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Crime of the Century, July 26, 2007
SEPTEMBER DAWN by Carole Whang Schutter, a historical
novel, is a riveting portrayal of the Mountain Meadows
Massacre, "the first act of religious terrorism in the
United States". Eerily having occurred on September
11, only 150 years ago, it will, for the first time,
be released under the same title as a Hollywood style
feature film. Having co-written the screenplay with
director Christopher Cain, Schutter showcases an
extensive historical knowledge in the telling of her
story. As a result, "SEPTEMBER DAWN", the movie, will
not be your stereotypical Hollywood hype flick.
My great great grandfather was the Mormon bishop of
Cedar City, Utah in 1857 and whose character is played
by Jon Voight in the film. He was a participant in the
massacre, a crime which is said to have "disgraced
humanity". My grandmother told me of it 43 years ago
with tears in her eyes and since, I've been obsessed
with discovering the facts of it.... facts which
powerful forces have worked very hard to keep covered.
Schutter uses a fictional love story and a novel
format to place the reader at the scene of what was,
without overstating, the crime of the century. This
takes nothing away from the authenticity of the event,
or from the responsibility assigned to those an honest
history would implicate. Neither does she shrink from
hard hitting depictions of the horrid details, or from
illuminating the role played by the then theocratic
Mormon church. In so doing, she honors the victims and
descendants of this horrific transgression. She honors
American History. Perhaps most importantly, she honors
the truth.
If you want to be fascinated by a historical episode
of monumental importance, as it is accurately
protrayed by SEPTEMBER DAWN, the movie, then treat
yourself to a thrilling page turner in SEPTEMBER DAWN,
the book.
Reviewed by Wayne Atilio Capurro
Author: WHITE FLAG: America's First 9/11
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