It's certainly not a movie I'd recommend if it's your first Civil War movie. Start with a crowd pleaser like Glory instead. The movie has a lot to say about war and peace, but it's hardly a good introduction to anti-war movies. Start with a winner like Hacksaw Ridge instead. This movie isn't in the same league with either of those great war movies.About the only other valid criticisms you could make are: 1) The first 3/4 of the movie is a bit slow moving, and could have been more dramatic. 2) The quality of the sound was a bit lacking, which is unfortunate when the use of dialect already makes the words a bit hard to follow.As other reviewers have said, it's great especially because it's different from most Civil War movies, showing the way a war can tear a country apart almost as much on the home front as it does on the battlefield.But part of the reason I loved it so much is that I find myself in agreement with the film's disparaged "Copperhead." While slavery is unbelievably cruel and inhumane, ending slavery in 1865 just wasn't worth the terribly high cost in blood. Brazil was the last country where slavery was legal in the Western Hemisphere, and they ended it in 1888. So even if the Civil War had never been fought, slavery in the South would almost certainly have ended by then anyway. If America had split into two countries, why would this have been so wrong? This is a controversial point of view -- then and now -- but I was pleased to see it argued with such conviction in a very watchable movie.

Seeing the difference between how those acted who agreed or disagreed with the actions of the war was quite interesting to compare. Depending on how you felt also affected your interactions and feelings of others, which makes sense. But also then families had strict rules with interactions between children. Enlisting I'm the army was a common thing, but also heartbreaking to families during this war to see the goodbyes that took place was saddening, families, parents, significant others leaving. As many kids do, the child of the "Copperhead", rebels and joins the army. The differences between Democrats and republicans seem very extreme. After a devastating disaster and this time it wasn't the death of a soldier, the families become even more heartbroken. "War is a fever." The acting in this movie was well done and the setting fit well for the time period, also helped to better understand what was going on then. Living in Upstate New York, it's interesting to see what where I live might have looked like during the war. The music in the movie was an excellent representative of what Army bands played while marching. The storyline does not focus on the lives of the soldiers and the bloodiness of the war, but those at home, how the war affected the regular citizens, in the north.

First thing first, I am a die hard patriot. I love movies that deal with historical American issues like The Revolution, or The Civil War. As such, it seems as though this movie was made to cater to my kind of audience. Awesome. The movie started a little slow if you aren't one for dialog, (I ,however, love dialog.) but don't worry it picks up. The acting was very good, the cinematography was nicely done, and in the end we have a very nicely put together piece about one of the hardest times in the history of our great nation. If you are a fan of the movie Gettysburg (both movies are made by Ronald F. Maxwell) you will probably enjoy this movie. In turn, if you haven't seen Gettysburg but enjoyed this, go and see it ASAP! All right lets get down to it: Cinematography-8 Acting-9 Plot-9 Score-7Rating for Copperhead: 9

I love Ron Maxweel's films, his sheer scope of grandeur and historical accuracy, his impeccable taste and his keen eye on details. His two master works, Gettysburg (1993) and its prequel Gods And Generals (2003) made him a true genius and placed him the Pantheon for ever. Pity, that there will be no third part of Shaara's trilogy. This one is no sequel, instead, this is a separate entry. The theme is the same - Civil War, this time, small town in New York state, with all its gossips, tragedies and fun. The smoldering conflict of copperheads and unionists is shown well. There is a big problem, though, as for the first 90 minutes the movie is terribly slow and ploddy, but then all of a sudden it begins to gallop as wild beast. Seems like Ron decided to make it shorter and thus cut much of footage. Who knows? The scenery is lovely, and the play of all actors is just marvelous. All young and old actors made their jobs absolutely great. Billy Campbell is a real winner here, as loud, proud man, he shines all the film. His delivery is just awesome. Brian Downey is excellent in his cameo as a priest, while Peter Fonda did his job equally as well. They all did well and real raw, as life truly is. Pity, some errors still stay and that did not allow the film to become another Ron masterpiece