The Alamo DVD

The Alamo recreates the events leading up to the massacre at the old Texas mission and the Battle of San Jacinto that followed it. It has been hailed as the most historically accurate version ever made of this bloody chapter in our history. However, there is more blood on the screen than in most of the characters, and the critics, with some notable exceptions, were not kind.

The Men of American Myth

The primary American characters in the story are General Sam Houston (Dennis Quaid), Colonel William Travis (Patrick Wilson), Davy Crockett (Billy Bob Thornton), and James Bowie (Jason Patric). Of the four, Thornton's Davy Crockett is by far the most developed. He is a man whose celebrity means he has to spend his life explaining that he isn't what people think he is. But his gallantry and courage at the Alamo live up to his legend.

Quaid as the steely Houston stands on his principles even when he knows he will have to pay with lives, and is proven right on both counts. Bowie is rather a blowhard, but redeems himself with a stirring death scene. He and Travis are at odds over how Texas should be governed, but put their differences aside when the battle approaches.

The battle scenes are brutal and spectacular, but remain less emotionally involving than they should be. Cinematography is excellent, especially in the night scenes. The DVD offers many extras, including deleted scenes and four featurettes.