Black radical filmmaker Spike Lee doesn?t like the new Mel Gibson movie, The Patriot. The film tells the story of the American revolution, depicting the revolutionaries as moral people who wanted a new nation that promised a better life for all people. Lee calls the Patriot “a complete whitewashing of history” and claims that it glosses over slavery and the destruction of American Indians.

The film is unique because it is pro-American and offers a sympathetic portrait of the American revolutionaries. There?s nothing here about the sins of the founding fathers. Mel Gibson, one of the most popular actors in Hollywood films, plays a courageous revolutionary war hero, Benjamin Martin, who is reluctantly forced to take up arms against the British after they murder one of his sons. At various times in the show, the religious faith of Martin and the Americans is viewed in a sympathetic light. One dramatic scene shows an evil British Colonel by the name of Tavington burning supporters of the revolution to death in a church.

The “R”-rating of the film was troublesome for those concerned about excessive violence and sex. This rating means that children under 17 years of age should not see the film. There is no sex, but there are scenes of graphic violence, although a much-publicized decapitation caused by a cannonball happens so quickly that viewers could miss it.

Film critic Michael Medved reports that the film got an “R” from the Motion Picture Association of America because of the fact that Martin?s sons, who are ages 10 and 13, take up arms on behalf of their family and home. He quotes the producer of Patriot as saying the Motion Picture Association was upset by the scene of these young people using guns. In a review, Matthew Robinson says that when he saw the film, some in the audience gasped at the scene: “Young boys with guns!”

After Columbine no less!” He commented, “We live in a remarkable time when people cannot tell the difference between fighting to defend one?s rights and killing for thrills.”

Stephen Hunter of the Washington Post questioned the scene of the Americans, including children, being burned alive in the church. “[W]ere little girls really wantonly burned alive in churches?” he asked. In fact, the British Colonel was known in real life as “The Butcher,” and Hunter admits he had a reputation for savagery. Hunter?s main gripe seems to be the movie?s patriotism. He called the film “corny.”

Another Post reviewer said the film was similar to Braveheart, the Mel Gibson film about the Scottish patriot who fought the British. The message of this film, he said, is “I?m a ?Braveheart? Doodle Dandy.” Braveheart was an epic that swept the Oscars. If The Patriot fails to do so, it will say a lot about the lack of patriotism of Hollywood. Our bet is that the Spike Lee mentality will prevail when it comes to the Academy Awards for this one. Hollywood?s opposition to the second amendment will also be a factor. You can have the final say by going to see the film.

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