The true story based film Field of Lost Shoes takes you into the Southern battle lines during the American Civil War. Now on DVD, the movie gets into the girt and gumption of the South as they face their powerful foe. Sometimes inspiring other moments futile, the battle that set the tone for a new America gets painful and devastating. Nicely filmed under able direction by Sean McNamara, the movie humanizes the pride, anger and courageousness of the teens who fought for the Southern Army.
Just before the battle of Battle of New Market in May of 1864 the Virginia Military Institute was still taking in new students. The teenage cadets were not a fighting unit, but a school for children with courses in military training. Not meant to form fighting units to face a real war situation, the school had a reputation for turning out good diligent men for Southern families.
With battles between the North and South being fought, several young men formed bands of brothers at VMI who worked hard to keep fit and ready in case they were needed. General Grant’s (Tom Skerritt) Union forces were taking the offensive wanting to break into the Shenandoah Valley, a turning point in the war if they could conquer their objective. Facing them were a malnourished Confederate Army that had limited cannon power and ballistics.
As a tactical ploy, Captain Henry DuPont (David Arquette) was ordered to lead a group of 274 cadets from VMI as a show of strength against the Northern troops. He was ordered not to engage the enemy unless he was ordered to do so or to defend themselves. What happened that day was a show of unexpected valor that even President Lincoln could not imagine.
The film depicts the rage and bravery of the group of boys who were lead into battle under the able direction of filmmaker Sean McNamara. His cinematography crews put the focus on the young teens in their school setting by tagging one of the many units within the school. Guiding his actors, McNamara shows how these friends became men and then put their lives on the line for the South.
BONUS FEATURES
“Behind the Scenes” is a short film that was made showing the crew at work shooting the movie.
“Virginia Military Institute” Every year they have a New Market Oath Ceremony where the teens pledge themselves to the institute and never forgetting the battle fought by the cadets.
Specifications and additional video information:
Cast: David Arquette, Luke Benward, Max Lloyd-Jones, Zach Roerig, Lauren Holly, Mary Mouser, Nolan Gould, Jason Isaacs, Tom Skerritt
Director: Sean McNamara
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for war violence and some thematic elements
Genre: War, Drama, Based on a True Story
Running Time: 1 hr 38 min
Video Release Date: December 2, 2014
Original Film Release Date: September 26, 2014
Language: English
Format: DVD
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1
Video: Widescreen in “Letterbox” Enhanced for 16×9 TVs
Subtitles: CC
Number of Discs: 1 Disc
Distributed by: ARC Entertainment
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
