Andersonville

"The great untold story of the American Civil War."

1996 2h 47m EN

👍

6.5

SOLID

⭐

7.3

IMDB

★6.5TMDB · 53★7.3IMDB · 2,091

WarDramaTV MovieHistory

Synopsis

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This lengthy docudrama records the harrowing conditions at the Confederacy's most notorious prisoner-of-war camp. The drama unfolds through the eyes of a company of Union soldiers captured at the Battle of Cold Harbor, VA, in June 1864, and shipped to the camp in southern Georgia. A private, Josiah Day, and his sergeant try to hold their company together in the face of squalid living conditions, inhumane punishments, and a gang of predatory fellow prisoners called the Raiders.

“The great untold story of the American Civil War.”

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Cast

Jarrod Emick
Josiah Day
Frederic Forrest
Sgt. McSpadden
Ted Marcoux
Martin Blackburn
Carmen Argenziano
Hopkins
Frederick Coffin
Collins
Cliff DeYoung
Sgt. John Gleason
William H. Macy
Col. Chandler
William Sanderson
Munn

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John Frankenheimer
Writers: David W. Rintels
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Clocks in at 167 minutes — on the longer side of feature-length cinema.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

30 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by John Frankenheimer, shot by Ric Waite. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Gary Chang. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Jarrod Emick and Frederic Forrest and Ted Marcoux carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The great untold story of the American Civil War.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0115097 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John Frankenheimer directs. Ric Waite behind the camera. Gary Chang scores. A long sit — settle in. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Clocks in at 167 minutes — on the longer side of feature-length cinema.
230 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Directed by John Frankenheimer, shot by Ric Waite. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Gary Chang. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Jarrod Emick and Frederic Forrest and Ted Marcoux carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "The great untold story of the American Civil War.".
8IMDB entry: tt0115097 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 53 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
10Classified under 8 themes, including "prison", "war crimes", "prisoner of war", "prison escape".

The technical file

Cinematography: Ric Waite
Original score: Gary Chang
Runtime: 167 min · 2h 47m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Andersonville (1996)
IMDB rating: 7.3/10 · 2,091 votes

Awards

Won 1 Primetime Emmy. 3 wins & 10 nominations total

American Cinema Editors Awards

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

John Frankenheimer

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2016-07-24
★ 8/10
And what do you call this little piece of heaven? The American Civil War, and Union soldiers are imprisoned at Andersonville, a crude stockade establishment presided over by the inept and cruel Captain Henry Wirz. It would prove to be a another dark and soul destroying chapter from the war. Lets get it out there right away, Andersonville was not the only hell hole prison operating during the American Civil War. Information from both sides of the coin is available on line for those wishing to explore further. That said, Andersonville is a story that deserved and is needed to be told, and this John Frankenheimer directed two - parter brings it vividly into the viewers' lives. In filmic substance terms it has all the standard POW movie cliche's. We follow a group of prisoners and a group of "convict bullies", with those in authority observing menacingly and proving desperately carefree as to the conditions of the prison and of humane traits in general. But as formulaic as it ultimately is, there's a determination by the makers to keep the characterisations real and viable, and they achieve this in spades. Pic is also boosted by superb period detail, costuming is grade "A", while the production and art design for the prison is harrowingly effective. Frankenheimer's tracking shots brings home the enormity of the misery, while Gary Chang's score is thankfully never bombastic. Cast are a mixed bag - to be expected in such a large ensemble piece - and you can't help but yearn for more of William H. Macy. Yet even though 30 minutes could easily have been shaved off of the run time, Andersonville is a production that should stay with you. The coda serving to remind us that that should be the case. 7/10

Production companies