Make Whatever Effort You Must To See ‘Cold Mountain’

During my big Oscar push in the first two months of this year, I had a bad experience the first time I tried to catch Cold Mountain, a Civil War epic from Anthony Minghella, the director of The Talented Mr Ripley and The English Patient. In fact, it was such a horrifying experience I feared I would no longer be able to evaluate the film fairly.

Thankfully, the movie is so strong that my reservation became a non-issue. Nominated for seven Academy Awards, the film has a great pedigree, which includes its Oscar-winning director, three award-winning leads, and its esteemed source, the best-selling 1997 novel by Charles Frazier, and I’m here to tell you that it’s worth the time and whatever effort it may take to watch it.

Released on VHS and DVD on June 29, it comes highly recommended from this humble reviewer. If you need a break from the big summer movie crowds, then here’s your ticket to home viewing pleasure.

Set in the waning days of the Civil War (but utilizing an intriguing, non-linear storytelling structure that bounces around quite a bit before that time), and opening with an intense, but strangely beautiful battle sequence, Cold Mountain is less a war movie than an out-and-out lushly romantic fable. It follows the Odyssian journey of an unassuming southerner named Inman (Jude Law), who pines for Ida (Nicole Kidman), the preacher’s daughter whom he met before he trekked off to war. Though they share few scenes together, Law and Kidman, both turning in fine performances, boast a palpable chemistry that is also boosted by the film’s lush cinematography and a hauntingly lovely score by Gabriel Yared (there are also some fantastic songs, including two Oscar-nominated tunes, one written by T Bone Burnett and Elvis Costello, and the other by Sting).

Though I’m not a fan of director/screenwriter Minghella’s The English Patient, which is backed by its fans as one of the great tearjerkers of the last 15 years, I must say there are a few moments in this engrossing tale when I thought I might need to reach for some Kleenex!

 Though Minghella’s leads are quite strong, he also utilizes a fine supporting cast to help convey his moving story. Rene Zellweger garnered her first Oscar trophy for her portrayal of the southern-drawling gal Ruby, a headstrong, intrepid drifter who helps Ida man her farm and protect it from attacks. Her work, along with that of Philip Seymour Hoffman, who plays the eccentric Reverend Veasey, whom Inman encounters in his travels, lend the film a needed bit of levity and light to balance the gravity of the epic love story and the somber musings on the affects of war upon not only those who fight, but those who are left behind.

Also providing capable aid are Donald Sutherland, who appears as Reverend Monroe, Ida’s father, and a newcomer to the North Carolina town of Cold Mountain; Kathy Baker, as Ida’s kind neighbor, Sally; Ray Winstone as the crude, base sheriff Teague; and a number of other familiar faces who show up in glorified (but effective) cameos among the motley crew of characters whose paths cross with that of Inman.

Quite interesting and engaging, albeit a tad violent, Cold Mountain, rated R for violence and sexuality, is a visually stunning film with some fantastic imagery, fine performances, and, to my taste, a much more plausible and palatable love story than Minghella’s beloved adaptation, The English Patient. It should more than adequately fit the bill for those looking for an alternative to summer movie selection.