MOVIE REVIEWS

Review by Peter McGinn

This must be one of the first docudramas around. They interview the battle participants and bystanders as in a documentary, but of course they are all actors since the battle took place in the 1700s. The film must mean more to the British and Scottish viewers than a mere Anglophile like myself, as it involves the last land battle fought on their soil and the final one of this clan uprising under the overrated Bonnie Prince Charlie. The show suggests that the Scottish strategy was deeply flawed to the point that the Prince’s own generals were mystified, and that it led not only to defeat but to practically a massacre, with 1200 deaths compared to 50 British soldiers. The movie also discusses the post-battle hunting down of upper clan survivors and families, leading to a rampage of rape and murder that would have done Hitler proud. Culloden has aged fairly well, retaining some interest even after over 50 years and despite it concerning a relatively minor battle in world history.