Bullet Points: Class of ’61

The American Civil War is both the most horrible time in American history and probably the most intensely studied. One has to merely walk into a book store and gingerly stroll towards the history section to see dozens of books on the tragic battles, incredibly charismatic officers, and hotly debated topics that turned the Union upside down. There are more similarities between the two times than one might imagine but it makes it no less infuriating to watch a movie focusing on the hypocrisy of the early Americas. I definitely see myself a student of History and we would all be better off if we paid close attention to the lessons of yesteryear.

Synopsis: Three West Point 1861 generation cadets and friends go on opposite sides after the breakout of The Civil War, with tragic consequences. A subplot involves Lucius, a Shelby Peyton’s slave, who kills a slave trader and goes on the run.

• West Point: The American Civil War was full of unique men and women. So many of the great officers of the war were West Point graduates. Many of them were close friends both before and after the war. It all furthered the narrative that the war was truly brother versus brother. Lines were drawn all over America. In small towns as much as big ones. And even in the most prestigious military school in the Union. Generals like Robert E. Lee, William Tecumseh Sherman, U.S. Grant, and Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson were all members of the various graduating classes.

• The Brink of War: The film opens with the main characters preparing for their graduation at West Point. There is Shelby Peyton (Dan Futterman), Devin O’Neil (Clive Owen), and George Custer (Josh Lucas). You’ll likely recognize one of those names but it seems the other two are inspired by real people and not actual ones. The three of them are looking forward to graduating but all of them are anxious about what the looming war might mean. Shelby is the most anti-war of them all. As a Southerner, he’s not willing to take the oath of office for the Union with the threat of having to fight against his own people in the South. O’Neil and Custer are both Unionists with O’Neil being an Irish immigrant who is so profoundly American that he even ends up fighting against his own brother.
• Fighting For “Something”: Class of ’61 plays fast and loose with some of the details of the war but the main characters are the focus of the film and it’s their perspectives that we’re given throughout. Peyton is loyal to the South in the way that many were. He grew up privileged with a different experience with slavery. You know, the kind where you “own” humans and control their very livelihoods while also develop relationships with them. Despite all of his education and knowledge, ideas like free will and human ownership are totally lost on him. Most of the movie is spent following Shelby and his decisions that lead him to accept his commission with the Confederate States of America. Like many Southern men, his great cause of states rights is an empty shell filled with the disgusting heritage of Southern slavery.

• The Fight: O’Neil and Custer fight for their chance to lead forces in the Union army but it isn’t till shortly before the first Battle of Bull Run that Custer receives his commission. Like most movies, it pits Custer on one side against Shelby on the Confederate side with O’Neil watching from the sidelines. The film certainly doesn’t have the big budget of a Gettysburg but it never treats the physical war as the focus of the movie. The real fight is the one that the characters go through as they discover that war poetry is rarely written by its participants.
• The Elephant In The Room: Every Civil War movie has to touch on the issue of slavery. Shelby doesn’t quite get it but we do get to feel a bit of the pain of it through the eyes of his former slave Lucius (Andre Braugher). Braugher does a great job with the character as he goes from a loyal “friend” to Shelby to an escaped slave. Shelby belatedly frees him but still doesn’t quite get the point. Lucius ends up on the run and learns some valuable lessons of his own.

The Verdict: The film plays it safe and doesn’t play up either side in the war. It clearly shows that the idea of slavery is bad (no shit) but still is less focused on the bullshit being spewed by the South and more interested in the “sad story” of poor little Shelby Peyton not getting what he wants. I personally love movies taking place in this era as I’ve always had a lot of interest in the War itself. Class of ’61 doesn’t quite understand the battle at hand. The battle not necessarily for the lives of the men but the battle for the soul of the country. It taps into it a little with the dynamic between the three friends but ultimately fails. I enjoyed it but I wouldn’t put it anywhere near the top of the list of the best American Civil War movies out there.