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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific cinematography only adds to a fine film, January 25, 2001
Sometimes, stunning camera work adds significant value to a film's overall merit. Case in point is 2001: A SPACE ODDYSSEY, in which the visuals (and musical score) contributed to make it one of the great films of all time. (I saw it 8 times when originally on the big screen.) Yet the acting and storyline were so nondescript that who can remember who the actors or their characters were beyond Hal? Although certainly not carrying the same weight as 2001 in the evolution of movie making, the 1993 release GERONIMO: AN AMERICAN LEGEND is elevated for the same reason, and the acting is much better besides.Matt Damon plays 2nd Lt. Britton Davis, newly commissioned out of West Point, who arrives in Arizona in the mid-1880's just in time to accompany the savvy 1st Lt. Charles Gatewood, played by Jason Patric, on a mission to accept the surrender of Geronimo, and bring the Apache leader to the reservation. Eventually, Geronimo abandons the reservation to again take up arms against the white man, ultimately fleeing into Mexico. The local Army cavalry command led by Gen. George Crook, played by Gene Hackman, and which includes Davis and Gatewood, must then go retrieve the war chief and his followers. Robert Duvall has the role of Al Sieber, the army unit's Chief Scout. As I've indicated, the cinematography in GERONIMO is absolutely gorgeous, the film being shot in the scenic expanses of southeastern Utah. Moreover, the acting doesn't deserve the reproach it's received. The Crook character, criticized as too bland, is played just right. By that time in his long military career, Gen. Crook had seen it all when it came to battling the Indians, and his unflappability, evenhandedness, and strength of character were fully established. There is no need for flamboyant theatrics on his part. The moody reserve of the Gatewood character is perfectly understandable. He came from a patrician Virginia family and, had it been 30 years previous, would have fought for the Confederacy. Fighting for the victorious Federals against another oppressed people (as the Southerners saw themselves) was certain to cause much self-examination. As Sieber put it to Gatewood, "You don't love who you're fighting for, and you don't hate who you're fighting against." Duvall, as Sieber, plays a role somewhat reminiscent of his Gus McCrae in LONESOME DOVE, but without the easygoing humor. In any case, his on-screen time is way too short. Wes Studi as Geronimo is more than adequate. I can't think of another Native American actor - and how many of those are there? - who could have done better. Matt Damon, as the likable Britton, serves as the film's narrator for the viewers' perspective. True, the plot incorporates no dramatic, climactic battles. That's because there weren't any in the real-life Geronimo saga, and Hollywood mercifully refrained, for once, from the unashamed embellishment of history. Rather, the story is portrayed for what it was - the inexorable, relatively low-key subjugation of one people by another - with all its attendant moral and ethical issues. The ending is particularly poignant. Maybe I just like westerns, but I think this a wonderful, haunting film. It's definitely worth seeing, especially if you have one of those home entertainment centers that aspires to be a big screen theater.
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