Father's Day Flicks

I knew something was up when my children presented my Father's Day gift to me early Saturday night ... at just about the time we would be thinking about what to do with the evening. In the giftbag were two of my favorite films -- the Wizard of Oz (from the kids) and the Patriot (from my wife).

The Wizard of Oz on DVD comes with a treasure trove of historical detail about the making of the film, the actors, etc. I was reminded again of two facts that I had heard before. First, that TWOO was not a profitable film upon its original release. Despite the popularity of the Frank Baum book series and the all-star cast, the MGM studio balance sheet did not recoup it's money from the film until it began to be shown annually on television in the mid-50's.

Second, TWOO was not the most lauded film of its year -- 1939. That honor went to Gone with the Wind. TWOO came away from the Academy Awards with just a couple of statues for music and screenplay.

As you know, The Patriot is a fictional story wrapped around a very real event -- the Revolutionary War. Our hero (played by Mel Gibson) is a South Carolina farmer, hero of the French Indian War, and a member of the state assembly (such as it was in 1776). Having lost his wife, and living with the guilt of his past soldiering brutality, he is reluctantly drawn into fighting for the Colonies after British soldiers kill one of his sons. It is the first of many deaths that make the Patriot too gory for some to enjoy.

I love the movie for a couple of reasons. The first is that it reminds us that wars fought 250 years ago were bloody, personal battles. Bombs were not being dropped from sunny skies onto targets miles away. Rather, the Revolutionary War was fought in cornfields and creekbeds, between men who lined up just a few yards from each other and fired their inaccurate weapons. Remember the famous challenge to Patriot soldiers at Bunker Hill? "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes."

Second, it shows the cost, and gain, of the Revolutionaries. Freedom was not obtained casually, through diplomacy and handshakes. Freedom came through the vision and sacrifice of extraordinary men. Freedom came with a price. It is a great reminder as we near Independence Day that the United States of America was indeed "a land of the free, and the home of the brave."