Album Reviews
Movies
Concert Reviews
Movie Resources
Concert Reviews
Book Reviews

Top 10
Resources
Contact Us

Based on the premise of Cold Mountain that I gleaned from upcomingmovies.com, the movie didn't seem to hold much interest for me. That is, until seeing a trailer (the one that emphasized the war side of the film, not the romantic one, mind you). From the trailer I began to think that perhaps this was a meaningful epic beyond its presumably cliche love story.

Here we have the journey of Inman (played by Jude Law), a wounded confederate soldier who makes the decision to desert his army at the end of the Civil War to return home to his love Ada (played by Nicole Kidman). Only thing is, Inman and Ada only recently met before he went off to war. She promised to be waiting for him when he returned. Meanwhile, Ada's father has passed away and she has gone from being a beautiful southern belle to a poor woman barely able to survive. That's when Ruby (played by Renee Zellweger) comes along, a hard-working woman who helps Ada with the farm and gives her the companionship she desperately needs.

As Ada struggles to maintain the farm, Inman journeys back to Cold Mountain. Along the way he runs into many interesting, colorful characters. Some who he helps and some who he must fight against. Another constant concern for Inman are the confederate soldiers who will shoot any deserters they find. It is interesting to note the close parallels between Cold Mountain and Homer's Odyssey.

If Pearl Harbor is the textbook example for the way to not mix war and romance, Cold Mountain is its antithesis. Here the love serves a purpose. It is not love itself that is glorified, but rather the motivation that it can give. The conclusion of the film is destined to leave many disappointed, and granted it does seem to make the story go flat. At first the conclusion was frustrating, but given time to ponder it all, it does make a certain amount of sense.

The acting performances here are excellent. Jude Law delivers the best acting job of his short career. His performance here should see him landing lead roles in many upcoming movies. Nicole Kidman is solid as always. However, the real scene stealer in the film is Renee Zellweger. The rough and very "ungirly" Ruby is a far cry from the types of characters Zellweger has played in her other films.

Supporting characters in the film do a great job as well. Phillip Seymour Hoffman plays a sex-crazed preacher who has impregnated his slave and fears retribution. Natalie Portman is terrific as a young mother whose husband has died in the war. One of the most moving scenes in the film occurs when we realize the tremendous fear and isolation that this woman (and many others like her) are suffering as the result of losing their husbands.

The production of Cold Mountain is top notch. Anthony Minghella does a great job directing. Violence is prevalent, but not glorified in the steady cinematography of Jon Seale. T-Bone Burnett and Jack White (of White Stripes) deliver the best southern-tinged soundtrack since O Brother Where Art Thou.

Don't be a bit surprised when Cold Mountain cleans up several Oscar awards in a couple months, quite possibly even best picture. This is the kind of stuff the academy loves and somehow I find myself liking as well.

Trae Cadenhead

Trae Cadenhead is a student at Union University. He is pursuing a Digital Media Studies major with a Film Studies minor and plans to become involved in film making following school. Trae also has an enormous interest in music. Along with writing for the Tollbooth, Trae maintains Loconotion (loconotion.surfhere.net), a digital archive of his thoughts on music and movies as well as a gallery of the art and video work he has done.