The Great Locomotive Chase

As I have mentioned previously there are a limited number of commercial films about the American Civil War. Most people will instantly say GONE WITH THE WIND, but much of that film deals with the ante - bellum South before war begins, and an hour and a half deals with Georgia under Reconstruction into the late 1870s. There is the twin films GODS AND GENERALS about the rise and fall of the magnificent military partnership of Robert E. Lee and Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson, and GETTYSBURG. There is also THE HORSE SOLDIER about Grierson's Raid into Mississippi during the Vicksburg Campaign. There was the "Shiloh" segment of the HOW THE WEST WAS WON about the battle there. There was THE RAID about the attack of the Confederate Raiders from Canada on St. Albans, Vermont in the summer of 1864. Quantrell and his raiders appear in several films, most notably DARK COMMAND. There is also the prototype for GONE WITH THE WIND about the collapse of southern society called SO RED THE ROSE.

It is notable that the emphasis is on raiders from the southern states or with southern sympathies (William Quantrell or Cantrell, or the St. Alban Raiders). But there are two films on one incident where the raiders were Northern raiders - the raid led by John J. Andrews in his celebrated February 1862 snatch of the locomotive "The General" in an attempt to damage southern railroad tracks and bridges in Georgia and Tennessee. The incident has ended up being the most discussed military operation of the land forces of the Civil War in film. First it was immortalized in what may have been the funniest war comedy ever made, Buster Keaton's THE GENERAL (1927). But Keaton, using the Andrews raid as a start, changed the story by having the Union raiders succeed for awhile in bringing the Confederate locomotive to Union lines and has his southern hero "Johnny Gray" steal it back. Unfortunately, Andrews and his raiders never had such luck. Indeed their fates were quite savage in reality.

This 1956 film by Walt Disney is not as well known as Keaton's classic, but it come closer to being factually correct. It shows the planning of the scheme by Northern spy Andrews and his picked crew, how they stole the "General" in a surprise act when the train was getting refilled, and how they ran it for a twenty mile chase until the train reached the end of it's coal supply. Here the reality of the story gets more savage. Andrews and his men fled into the forests of Tennessee, and were tracked down by Southern troops who recaptured most of them. Andrews and several others were hung. The other captured raiders were sent to prison camps.

For people who only think of Fess Parker as Walt Disney's "Davy Crockett" may be fascinated to see he played another role for that producer - and did a good job at it. And like the last episode of the series about the "King of the Wild Frontier", Parker's character died heroically, but violently again.

I watched this western for the third time today, and in LBX frame please, far better than the average and unbearable garbage can pan and scan one. This western is unique in its kind, with thrilling and so inventive locomotive chase, as its title says so. And I would not have expected such a story and directing from a Disney production; this film is not actually for juvenile audiences, although kids can perfectly see it. No gratuitous violence here. Yes, an exciting film with another surprise that no other comment has talked about.

THERE IS NO WOMAN CHARACTER HERE !!!!

Surprising for a western, especially a Disney production. Even the most violent films nearly always have a woman in the stories, at least supporting characters; here, no gal at all. That doesn't bother me but only surprises. That's all.

In the wake of his burst of popularity after becoming that iconic figure for Fifties kids Davy Crockett, Fess Parker starred in The Great Locomotive Chase. The film is based on a true incident from the Civil War involving an espionage mission where several Union soldiers are sent under the leadership of a civilian who knows the territory. The idea is to seize a train and destroy as much railroad equipment and track between Marietta, Georgia and Chattanooga, Tennessee.

The fact that Fess Parker as John J. Andrews is a civilian is cause for much dissension in the ranks of these soldiers who are not used to operating with stealth tactics. One of them, Jeff York, is obstreperous to the point of mutiny.

Although Parker is the star, depending on your point of view the real hero is Jeffrey Hunter who is the conductor of the train Parker and his men steal. Hunter is courageous, cunning, and resourceful and every bit a match for Parker and his tricks.

From back in the day I remember that the Disney Studio was marketing toy trains based on the locomotives used in this film. No amount of begging could get my parents to part with any money for one of those. But somewhere some folks around my age have those models and I daresay they're worth a fortune.

The Great Locomotive Chase is a fine well constructed film that is as fresh today as when I saw it in theaters way back when. A must for any Civil War film festival.

"The Great Locomotive Chase" is the true story of the most famous train chase in the American Civil War, headed by Andrews' Raiders. They were Union spies who sank deep into the south and stole a Confederate train, and headed north. The goal was to destroy the lines of communication for the South and their supplies. Ultimately though, the mission was a failure and the Union spies were captured.

This film is told from the perspective of the Union forces and stars Fess Parker as Andrew and Jeffrey Hunter as the southerner who fails their mission. One of the best Fess Parker films to come out of the Disney Studio in the 1950's.

The idea for the film came from Buster Keaton's silent era film, "The General (1927)," which he had starred in and directed. It is told from the perspective of the South, unlike "The Great Locomotive Chase." The best scene involves the burning of a train car and explosives to try to collapse a bridge. For a brief moment, the viewer might believe the Union spies will get away. This is a superb film, 9 of 10!!

Finally, those of us who are railroad and civil war fans have an excellent widescreen version of this movie, with the release of The Great Locomotive Chase on DVD. While some of the details in the story line are not accurate history, Disney did a very good job. The trains even have link and pin couplers which are virtually never seen in movie accounts of the period.