The character parts are well cast, the shots are well-framed, the camera movement is fluid and elegant, and there is an ambitious--if unsuccessful--attempt to make this Civil War saga a commentary on Vietnam. But the dialogue is preachy, the plot confused, Hamilton is miscast, Ford phones it in, Stevens--in her post-rape sequences--looks rumpled rather than violated, and TV stars Paul Peterson (innocent Union recruit) and Max Baer Jr. (giggling Reb psychopath) give truly ghastly performances.