The story of three Union and three Confederate soldiers who wind up spending the night together during the Battle of the Wilderness in Virginia in 1864.
The three Rebels — Harrison Bolding, James McDavid Hogg and teenager After Stand Kennedy — were fleeing after the first day’s carnage, looking for some place safe to hide. Two of the Union soldiers — Augustus Elliott and John Sunderlin — are trying to help a wounded comrade, Pietro Brolo, who has a bullet in one leg.
The focus is on Confederate Harrison Bolding (Brian Merrick) and Union soldier John Sunderlin (DJ Perry) as they forge a friendship over a campfire, talking of loved ones back home they hope to see again someday.
The looming question: What will happen when the sun rises?
Brian Merrick as Harrison Bolding in Wicked Spring (2002)
DJ Perry as John Sunderlin in Wicked Spring (2002)
Review:
There are surprisingly few Civil War films, and this one does a very nice job of depicting the confusion and savagery of battle. And showing that even the bravest soldier can lose his nerve when surrounded by such chaos.
But the plot device that has soldiers from opposing forces spending a night together around a campfire when they’re trying to avoid detection seems like quite the stretch.
So does another key plot device. Harrison has a big stack of letters from back home that he’s never read because he can’t read. He’s been too bashful to let anyone know he can’t read. But he accepts Sunderlin’s offer to read to him.
Give the filmmaker’s an B for effort, a C for execution and credit for shying away from a fairytale ending.
In a synopsis on IMDb, written by the director, it’s indicated the soldiers didn’t know they were on opposing sides until the morning after they’ve spent the night together. Huh? That would explain the lack of hard feelings around the campfire. But that campfire is bright enough to read letters around, but the Rebels can’t tell the three Union soldiers are wearing blue uniforms? And the Union soldiers can’t hear the Rebels southern drawl?
Curtis Hall as Augustus Elliott in Wicked Spring (2002)
Terry Jernigan as James McDavid Hogg in Wicked Spring (2002)
Directed by:
Kevin R. Hershberger
Cast:
Brian Merrick … Harrison Bolding
DJ Perry … John Sunderlin
Terry Jernigan … James McDavid Hogg
Aaron Jackson … After Stand Kennerly
Curtis Hall … Augustus Elliott
Mark Lacy … Pietro Brolo
Lindsey Ingram …. Virginia Gordon
Rebecca Lawlor … Parthenia Sunderlin
Score: David G. Russell
Runtime: 102 min.
Memorable lines:
After Stand: “I remember my brother telling me a story about a girl who had a vision that her husband died.”
Fellow soldier: “How?”
After Stand: “In the war.”
Soldier: “Ain’t hard to believe.”
After Stand: “Well, he still wanted to go anyhow. And she loved him so much, she got him drunk one night and he fell asleep, right? Well, while he was sleeping, she cut off his hand.”
Hogg: “Slang wrangler.”
John: “Wish my wife would have loved me that much.”
Harrison Bolding: “This whole thing has been a big mistake.”
James McDavid Hogg: “The only mistake is you, you skirt whipped ninny.”
Mark Lacy as Pietro Pete Brolo in Wicked Spring (2002)
Aaron Jackson as After Stand Kennedy in Wicked Spring (2002)
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