I overall thought this movie did a wonderful job of bringing the past into the present. The actors did a good job in bringing the characters to life and I loved the more southern feel of the movie.

Cold Mountain touches all of the social issues that occured at the end of the Civil War leading into the era of Reconstruction. Ada (Nicole Kidman) falls in love with a shy man Inman (Jude Law). Inman gets sent off into the war, as a Confederate soldier, where the whole thing explodes, and leds him on a journey to find his one true love Ada back at Cold Mountain. Inman faces a perilous journey where he is captured, held at gunpoint, as well as dealing with prostitutes and the homes guardsmen of the South. The movie starts out very strong with the Battle of Petersburg, but quickly fades and slows down leaving audiences bored. However, director Anthony Minghella did display a work that was very unique regarding a Civil War film. Technically, this film is very pleasing. Minghella captured correct lighting to show the emotions of the era, and particular characters, yet did not cast properly. Renee Zellweger's character of Ruby was the only believable character in the film, when it came to the "look" and accent. Overall the film was good, but just couldn't live up to the greatest Civil War romance movie of all time; Gone With the Wind.

I am not a native of the southern U.S. But I know ugly Hollywood stereotyping, and insulting and frankly ignorant Southern characterizations are front and center in this movie. It was so annoying that I couldn't watch it more than 10 minutes. It's a disgrace to be called a drama; it's more of a dark comedy, but I couldn't laugh.