The Crossing

Ever since I was a young school boy, I have seen the famous painting of General Washington crossing a river in a boat. Now I can appreciate just how significant this event is in the history of the USA. This film was a very pleasant surprise - one of the many 'sleepers' that never get much publicity (at least not here in NZ) but is in fact a quality film that is well worth watching.

A&E's original motion picture, The Crossing, is an excellent historical drama starring Jeff Daniels in a remarkably human portrayal of General George Washington and the events that led up to the Battle of Trenton.

This story of the Delaware crossing is fast-paced and, along with the action, offers an intriguing look into the military strategy, decision-making and sheer desperation that drove the Revolutionary Army to its first great victory.

The Crossing may be a TV movie, but it would be equally at home in theaters. Well done, highly recommended viewing.

From the first few minutes this film kept my attention. Even though viewers are bound to know what will happen in the end, this film nevertheless maintains the suspense and excitement. Most people would instantly recognize the famous painting of General Washington standing in the small boat crossing the river, and now finally I appreciate why this instant in time is so significant in American history. The shame of this movie is that probably so many people will pass it up just because it may appear boringly historical, when in fact it is an excellent film.

I won't vouch for the absolute historical accuracy of what gets portrayed here, but as one take on George Washington's attack on Trenton (the title refers to the crossing of the Delaware River for the attack) it works. Certainly not everything portrayed happened (how can one know exactly what went on over two hundred years ago) but the details of the crossing and the battle were accurate enough from what I know of U.S. history, and the movie itself was dramatic and held my attention from start to finish.

Kudos to Jeff Daniels, who offered a completely believable performance as Washington. Daniels is proving to be quite adept at these kinds of historical movies ("Gettysburg" leaps to mind, and of course now "Gods and Generals.") A good, if lesser known, supporting cast also made valuable contributions to this picture.

In short, I wouldn't use this as a source material for an essay on the Battle of Trenton, but I would certainly recommend it as a very good movie.

8/10

One of the best films I have seen on the American Revolution. It took the founding fathers and made them human. I thought Jeff Daniels did an excellent job portraying Washington as a man and a general. I have seen the film a number of times and have shown it to several groups of students. Both my students and I enjoy and learn from it.