I'll tell you why so serious

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

"Andersonville" is a TV film which premiered on Turner Network Television in 1996. It stars William H. Macy, (Fargo) Thomas F. Wilson, (Back to the Future) Cliff De Young, (The Craft) William Sanderson, (Blade Runner) and Fredrick Forest. (Apocalypse Now) It is produced by Ted Turner, (Gods and Generals) directed by John Frankenheimer (Ronin) and written by David W. Rintels. (Not Without My Daughter)It is about a small group of United States soldiers who get captured by rebels during The War of the Rebellion in 1864 at the Battle of Cold Harbor in Virginia. The kidnapped U.S. troops are taken via train to an enemy prison called "Camp Sumter", but nicknamed "Andersonville" by the inhabitants because it is located by a small railroad depot called "Anderson".Located in rural Georgia, thousands of members of the Federal Military suffer and die daily due to an acute absence of bread, vegetables, fruit, blankets, hammers, nails, wood, medicine, personal security, the attention of decent doctors and surgical instruments. There is also an overwhelming amount of disapproving overpopulated areas, meagerly clean environments and a great need of palatable water.The facility is run by Henry Wirz - A doctor-turned-secesh caption originally from Switzerland who migrated to the States in his early adult years after college (Specifically, Kentucky and later Louisiana) where he had his own medical practice. He joined up with the traitors in 1861 and was later injured in his right arm at the battle of Seven Pines. After the affliction, he was put in charge of the affairs at Andersonville. Perhaps due to his supposed previous pharmaceutical training he acquired in his native country.While Wirz's staff of guards are certainly dangerous individuals (who are always looking for a legal excuse to shoot Unionists so they can win a thirty-day furlough, which is the prize for killing a Lincolnite as long as it's within the guidelines of the law) the primary villains of the movie are a vicious, unmerciful, armed and violent gang of New York inmates called "Raiders".They were bounty jumpers before their imprisonment. (A bounty jumper was someone who joined the Nationals, collected payment while still in basic training, deserted, rejoined the Army of the Potomac in another region, got more money, abandoned their post again, only to volunteer once more and repeat the process until caught either by Uncle Sam or the rivals, if their misbehaving ways are discovered at all.)After establishing themselves at Camp Sumter, this pack of wild bullies eagerly and physically attack groups of new arrivals in an attempt to steal what belongings they have with them so they can increase their own survival in the desolate penitentiary. The authorities make no effort to stop this band of cutthroats, having no care for the well being of the Billy Yank's. The Johnny Reb's will even trade with the posse of infamous bandits.Despite what some audience members might think, this is not a pro-Union/anti- Confederate motion picture. While I do think there were a lot of things Wirz could have done, some things were beyond his control. The intense suffering that went on at Andersonville was not done on purpose by the Confederacy. It was a lack of resources that caused the hardships. There is a scene that shows Henry Wirz in a sympathetic light, a line that points out Northern prison camps are no better then Camp Sumter, and there are also two good Southerner characters and a lot of bad Yankees presented in the flick.I believe the reason why Andersonville gets the attention it does is because more people died there then any other institution during the United States Civil War, and this photo play is just telling their story. The mini-series is very honest, and no one group or person really gets blamed for the mistreatment of the convicts. It is sadly all apart of the hades that is war."Andersonville" is an anti-war film and certainly worth screening.

Having looked forward to seeing this film for quite a while, I was quite let down when I finally managed to view it. Andersonville is a story that needed to be told, but this telling of the tale rattles and rambles trying to find its sense of direction. The production suffers from a rather poorly written script and mediocre acting. There were some decent scenes, and a few good performances, but by and large this was a rather jumbled, boring, over-long, predictable mess. It could have been, and deserved to be, so much more.So unless you really have to see a movie about this notorious prisoner of war camp, I'd give this one a miss.

I believe this is one of the best and most fair-minded Civil War movies ever made. The actors all give a first-rate performance, and the director keeps the movie focused and on track, without laying blame to either side. Most of the movies facts are historically accurate and the dialog reproduces (in my opinion) the attitudes of the times.The Raiders were a historical reality, and the trial and subsequent execution were unique during the Civil War. While many parts of the movie are memorable, the most poignant scene is at the end when one of the major characters is buried in the cemetery. The camera zooms in on the white-painted headboard with his name, and then pans back to show you the real, present-day cemetery - with this particular headstone name in the center. Seeing nearly 13,000 headstones of real-life prisoners who died at Andersonville really puts the film in perspective.

Generally these TNT original productions are nothing what one could call spectacular. This film from John Frankenheimer however is one of the better ones. A tale of imprisonment and survival inside the notorious Confederate POW camp known as Andersonville. Civil War historians would probably with certainty find various historical inaccuracies but it is worth viewing although a tad on the long side. Good performances from many of the cast but it seems Frederick Coffin and William Sanderson do the best job as two of the ring leaders of the camps vicious "Raiders" gang. A must see for any Civil War fan.