Quote Originally Posted by BoldHighlander View Post
Okay, I have to comment on "The Patriot" as a member of the Brigade of the American Revolution (BAR) -- which were heavily involved as extras in this film, (& two of my compatriots "managed" the reenactors for this film).

The studio made a big deal of its hiring of Smithsonian historians as consultants for this picture, to the point that you almost got the feel that you were seeing history played out on the screen. You weren't.
And this really is the crux of the whole issue.
I even have a copy of the Smithsonian's magazine that came out at the time w/ Mel on the cover, where they lauded the film as a very historically accurate telling of the period.

I could go on all day & cite all the inaccuracies, including that Tarleton ("Tavington" in the film) never burned down a church full of civilians, nor did the Crown forces as a whole.

I remember a story told many times on the BAR board at the time about how the afore mentioned reenactor "managers" (both historians in their own right) tried to inform the production team that the cut & color of the uniform of the British Dragoons were all wrong: Tarleton's men wore green sleeved waistcoast (or white linen frocks in the South) and natural colored buckskin breeches. The coats seen in the film are War of 1812 fashion, not Rev War (as are also the black colored riding breeches).
The response from the costume designer says it all when she replied "I just won an oscar for Titanic, you don't tell me my job!"
They would say "1812 or 1776. Close enough." No, it's not! It's 36 years! Would you make a movie about WWII and outfit the actors in garb from the Vietnam War?