War Flowers

One reviewer speculated that the deficiencies in this film were perhaps due to a "1st time" director. Search Serge Rodunsky and you will find that he has delved into several subjects--some rather deep.The American Civil War is one period of 4 years that has been mined and mined again and again. I'd like to examine the positive aspects of the film, not those that make it appear like a "low budget throwaway."I'm sure Ricci and Berenger did not come cheap. It is true, Berenger has appears in many epics of this period, and he is not the man he was portraying Longstreet in 1989's "Gettysburg" (that's 30 years ago!) Many of he important aspects of the war that lost 2% of the population of the United States to Civil War are portrayed. I'm a buff of war re-enactment films. There are subplots included here that are main themes of other films--all jammed into 90 or so minutes.Well, Berenger, a general (why Brigadier, he deserves at least 2 stars), wants to save his one remaining son (2 died at Antietam) and commands him to go to the rear. The honor-bound Louis does not take the train meant for him and joins another unit on the mythical battlefield. We are not told where this drama occurs. That is war point #1, reminiscient of "Saving Private Ryan."At nearing 40 Ricci plays a younger woman, perhaps, with an 8 year old daughter, and mourning a deceased boy, Isaac.Death before majority was very common in the 1800s, something we forget with our 1.7 birthrate, which cannot maintain the current US population....she is left alone by her husband, who is only a sergeant in the Confederate Army.#2 point--what happens to civilian women in the course of all-out war.#3 point--keeping a child innocent....SaraBeth tries to shield Melody from the horror she is living and starving through..and soon learns how easy it is for a child to be robbed and dumped by the side of the road. The protagonist, Rufus, is a mangy-toothed one-legged man who is not in uniform because a horse stepped on his leg. Shades of "Deliverance" here--and no one ever seems to have taken a bath in months, except for SaraBeth and Melody. I think it is rather realistic.#5 --Set dressing, uniforms and weapons. Some great care went into this, for while the uniforms and weapons are all basically correct (Federal and Greyback), Louis, a wounded Union Captain who is nursed by Sarabeth back to health, is actually carrying a correct reproduction of an 1860 Colt .44 revolver. 3 Confederates descend upon Sarabeth's farmhouse and terrorize her searching for food, and one man convincingly threatening sexual assault. I don't know what it is about war that turns normal men into rapists, but it is fairly common (example, Berlin after the Soviets took over on May 8, 1944.#6 War Reenactments: These are perhaps stock footage for the larger skirmishes--it is difficult to tell. Up close, the Confederates are carrying the correct 1862 Richmond made rifled muskets, which have a peculiar hammer due to the lack of a Maynard primer. The gunplay, although horrid, is realistic.#7 Longing for Man of the House. So many men enlisted in the Confederacy at the outset of the war, many women wondered for 4 years or longer if they would ever see him again. I'm not quite sure how a husband, wife, and young female could manage a farm that has a relatively large farmhouse that we see here, and Sarabeth is not a backwoods"handyman"--far from it. She begins to develop romantic feelings towards Louis, who, although a Federal--is actually a human being and an officer from Philadelphia.. I won't spoil the end of the film plot twist, although the last meeting with her husband seems like it might have been a dreamscape--it isn't clear, because suddenly there is much food on the table. Again, no revelation here, but a 2 barrel shotgun with two hammers will not fire if the hammers are not pulled back. I'm not sure Sarabeth could have handled such a weapon in a realistic one on one combat situation--but she does.#8 The ending is just about identical to "Gone With the Wind"--we must forget the past and look forward to a new day. I've traveled the war-ravaged parts of Germany and am amazed at just how little one can see of the total war that was wreaked on the civilian population at night by the RAF and "Bomber Harris." They were his targets. In an attempt to maintain some nobility in an ignoble conflict, the USAAF did daylight bombing of military targets. However, in Operation Thunderclap, the 8th Air Force descended into an all-out pulverization of Central Berlin (Berlin Mitte).I've heard on historian speculate that that one raid made the bombing the center of Dresden more palatable, and ultimately, the firebombing of Tokyo and use of nuclear weapons. It is a slippery slope.This film may lead to the reader searching for other and better portrayals of the American Civil War--but battles alone tell maybe 1/4 of the story--the effect on civilians was much longer enduring (as can be seen in the South today).You'll find films with better makeup--I was distracted by the poor job of putting a mustache on Berenger, it would have been better not to have bothered. He has a long list of historic portrayals.

Written and directed by Serge Rodnunsky, War Flowers (2012) is a vanity period film staring a surprising cast, including veteran actors Christina Ricci and Tom Berenger. A few charming performances save this otherwise meandering and strange take on American history from being too unbearable to watch, but history buffs will cringe.Union general McIntire (Tom Berenger) lost two sons at the Battle of Antietam, so when his army invades an unnamed valley in North Carolina in 1863, he tries to send his third son, Louis (Jason Gedrick), back home before the war ends. Eager to get into the fight, Louis disobeys his father but gets wounded and seeks shelter in a farm house.The house is owned by Sarabeth Ellis (Christina Ricci) and her daughter Melody (Gabrielle Popa), who are waiting for Sarabeth’s husband, John (Bren Foster), to return from the war. Sarabeth believes John has been killed, but Melody has faith. Short on food, they’re harassed by a local derelict, Rufus (Kurt Yaeger).As the fortunes of war swirl around their farm, Sarabeth must decide whether to embrace her unwelcome Yankee visitor and perhaps move on with her life, or give up and succumb to the horrors of war. Things look bleak when Louis McIntire is captured by his own men, mistaken for a Confederate, and left in the stockade by his father. Will the two reunite and survive?There aren’t many redeeming qualities in this film, but if I had any praise at all, it would be for Gabrielle Popa’s portrayal of seven-year-old Melody. It’s a shame that actress hasn’t gone on to do more with her career. The back-and-forth between her and Christina Ricci’s character is the highlight of this movie. Their dialog borders on anachronistic, but it has a certain charm that saves the viewer from an otherwise lackluster and cliche-ridden script.War Flowers‘ two stars, Ricci and Tom Berenger, are not at the height of their abilities. Berenger played Lt. Gen. James Longstreet in my favorite Civil War film Gettysburg (1993), but here both his acting and his physical health seem to have deteriorated. Likewise, Ricci gives it her best effort but there isn’t much to work with. This movie was released after her TV show Pan Am (2011-2012) was cancelled, so maybe she had nothing better to do.On a side note, North Carolina in 1863 is a weird setting for this film. There were only two battles fought in North Carolina that year: Fort Anderson and Washington. Both were Confederate offensives along the coast in the spring. Did the writer do any research for his movie, or did he just pick a southern state and year at random? If you’re going to make a historical film, details matter. Grounding a story in real events makes it more compelling and authentic.War Flowers currently has a 4.2 rating on Imdb.com and a 38% audience score on RottenTomatoes, for good reason. Like the more recent Son of a Gun (2019), War Flowers is an amateur effort with a low production value. Despite spending upwards of $5 million, the direction, cinematography, editing, and sound are all embarrassingly poor quality, even for an indie film. Civil War buffs should avoid this amateur effort.

This 2012 American Civil War romantic drama follows a North Carolina woman [Christina Ricci] who is struggling to bring up her 7 year old daughter Melody alone after her husband has been away with the Confederate army for some time. Facing food shortages, a creepy neighbour and a lack of knowledge about the husband she has her own battles to fight, especially when the war reaches her farm and a wounded Yankee turns up [Jason Gedrick].This is slow to get to the point, the real story kicking in after about 30 minutes, the intro being too long which bogs the film down almost to boredom [lose a *]. The plot itself is a reasonable one, the script stiff in places, as is the acting which is often below par in the beginning and the romance underplayed, although the scenes with the intruders are all intense and it does have some humorous moments and some attempted surreal/supernatural effects.The single disc opens to a Deutsch/English selection, then goes to a main menu offering play, set up [German/English choice again], chapters and trailer show [original and German version]. Actually now rated 12 this is a family view containing no swearing, nudity or sex scenes, although there are frequent ‘skirmish’ scenes where people are killed, but nothing horrific or graphic, but may be unsettling to younger viewers. At best this is **** Sunday matinee family fare, thanks in part to the clever ending. Approach it as such and it will entertain but the first half is a real struggle.

I can't resist any 3D, and seldom feel ripped off,but it does happen. This movie is one of those. The usual nursing the enemy and falling in love etc etc AND the 3D is one of the poorest I have seen. I don't think this was released in US with good reason as the story alone is not enough to carry it. It may have a great ending (doubtful) as I did not finish it. Another poor 3D is Nightmare B4 Xmas.

A complete waste of time with some terrible acting thrown in. I do not know why anyone ever bothered to take the precious time to make this film.Disappointing as well, because Christina Ricci is normally in the better films.

Whilst I like all movies pertaining to the American war of the states, especially if based on actual events, I will not balk at entertaining pieces of fiction. This story however, it not exactly memorable.

Excellant dvd ,still watching kind regardsAnn Davison