PATTON is a three-dimensional bronze bust of World War II field general George S. Patton (George C. Scott) who wrote poetry, fired pistols at strafing fighter planes, and loved America with a lofty and historical zeal. Tracing his personal rivalries with such generals as Rommel and Montgomery, his problematic treatment of his .. Read more
| Starring | George C. Scott, Karl Malden, Stephen Young |
|---|---|
| Director | Franklin J. Schaffner |
| Genres | Action/Adventure, Drama |
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PATTON is a three-dimensional bronze bust of World War II field general George S. Patton (George C. Scott) who wrote poetry, fired pistols at strafing fighter planes, and loved America with a lofty and historical zeal. Tracing his personal rivalries with such generals as Rommel and Montgomery, his problematic treatment of his own men, and his nearly runaway contempt for diplomacy, the film triumphs as an enduring portrait of a complex and larger-than-life figure. PATTON was recipient of 10 Academy Award Nominations and winner of eight, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor--Scott, Best (Adapted) Screenplay--Francis Ford Coppola/Edmund H. North. The special edition features a behind-the-scenes feature, production stills, and a running audio commentary on the production.
| Starring | George C. Scott, Karl Malden, Stephen Young |
|---|---|
| Director | Franklin J. Schaffner |
| Studio | 20TH CENTURY FOX HOME ENTERTAINMENT |
| Run time | DVD: 2 hrs 42 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Action/Adventure, Drama |
| Language | English |
| Hearing-impaired | English |
| Subtitles | Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish |
| Released | DVD: 04 Jun 2001 Production year: 1970 |
| Format | DVD |
As a study of power, neither Coppola's script nor Schaffner's direction are precise enough to merit the praise that has... read more on Time Out
"...[Scott's performance] is still the glue holding together this blunt study of war..." -- Rating: B
Patton is not a war film, but a cameo of a great and problematical American general. Unlike commanders today who bomb civilian centers into the Stone Age, Patton counted honor, valor, and honesty among his warrior arsenal.
As the film admirably revealed, he was raised amidst wealth and privilege in order to set the example of an impeccable warrior who is disciplined, moral, generous in victory, honest to a fault, demanding of subordinates as of himself. His Achilles' heel was twofold: his temper and its fast track to his tongue, and the bad luck of being born in a slick political era. Patton was an anachronism in a time that would reward ruthlessness and Abu Ghraibs, and support lying presidents who made war so that their corporate friends could clean up. Patton wanted to sit down over a table of fine food and wine and talk late into the night with the German High Command about battles and tactics. For him, the war was over, but his masters didn't agree: a Cold War was revving up, driven by propaganda, demonizing and rhetoric.
Patton's agonizing process of realizing this comes across admirably in the film. Too bad it didn't go a little further and raise questions about his death just before he was to return to the United States. He fell in Germany not to an honorable bullet but to the duplicity that Shakespeare told us to always look for when power is in the offing.
Patton is not a war film, but a cameo of a great and problematical American general. Unlike commanders today who bomb civilian centers into the Stone Age, Patton counted honor, valor, and honesty among his warrior arsenal.
As the film admirably revealed, he was raised amidst wealth and privilege in order to set the example of an impeccable warrior who is disciplined, moral, generous in victory, honest to a fault, demanding of subordinates as of himself. His Achilles' heel was twofold: his temper and its fast track to his tongue, and the bad luck of being born in a slick political era. Patton was an anachronism in a time that would reward ruthlessness and Abu Ghraibs, and support lying presidents who made war so that their corporate friends could clean up. Patton wanted to sit down over a table of fine food and wine and talk late into the night with the German High Command about battles and tactics. For him, the war was over, but his masters didn't agree: a Cold War was revving up, driven by propaganda, demonizing and rhetoric.
Patton's agonizing process of realizing this comes across admirably in the film. Too bad it didn't go a little further and raise questions about his death just before he was to return to the United States. He fell in Germany not to an honorable bullet but to the duplicity that Shakespeare told us to always look for when power is in the offing.