One of the benefits of watching films when they come out on DVD is that you've effectively fast-forwarded through all the promotion, hype, knee-jerk reactions, and general fussing, and simply watch the film on its own merits. The Patriot is a film that, when it first came out, sounded like a lame Hollywood blockbuster-attempt; the irate discussions about its historical accuracy (or lack thereof) didn't fill me with enthusiasm, either. Still... an interesting historical period... Mel Gibson... surely it deserved a chance! And do you know what? The Patriot is actually a quite entertaining film.

At the outset, it's interesting to see a somewhat different angle on the Revolutionary War. The action in The Patriot takes place in the South, where the colonials were drawn into the conflict with England only after the New England colonies took up arms in rebellion. Part of the point, in the early scenes of the film, is that the war feels distant enough to be a "glorious adventure" for young and inexperienced men, while experienced men like Martin (Mel Gibson), having fought in the bloody French and Indian Wars, know that soon enough the fighting will hit home. And indeed it does; one of the things that The Patriot touches on (though not so much as I think it should have) is the way that this "war of independence" was also a civil war. The title ought to cut both ways: those who sided with England felt that they were being true patriots, just as much as those who wanted to separate. (And if England had won, that's exactly how they would have been seen by history, just as in the US Civil War a century later the patriots were those who sided with the larger state against those who would separate.)

One of the interesting points of The Patriot - and one that I think is easily lost - is that it highlights how warfare, by its very nature, breeds escalating violence. Our attention is drawn to the brutal and sadistic Col. Tavington, who coolly commits atrocities... but we should not forget that "peaceful" Martin loses control in his first assault on British soldiers, slaughtering all of them with gruesome veal, or that Martin earned his fame by committing atrocities in the French and Indian Wars. If we look at the overall story, we see that some of the characters want to run the war by "civilized" means; Lord Cornwallis is horrified by Tavington's brutality, and also points out on the strategic level that his actions are encouraging resistance by the Americans. It's all a vicious cycle: Tavington's actions incite Martin to take up arms; Martin's success in fighting back prompts Cornwallis to accede to Tavington's increasingly cruel methods to stop Martin; and these in turn stiffen the colonials' spirit of resistance.

The Extended Cut

Let me start off by saying that the Extended Cut is really not all that "extended." About ten minutes of additional footage have been added, so we're looking at a mild amplification, not a major "director's cut." Even so, though, I'd say that the extra material makes for a more well-rounded film. The one major addition is a short scene in which the children at the farm see corpses floating down the river. Though brief, it's very effective in setting up the disturbing nature of the situation the family (and indeed the country) is in. Other scenes amplify the British politics as they attempt to deal with the leader of the militia irregulars, and serve to increase the complexity of the story.

Though it's not much additional material, I'd say that the extra scenes help flesh out the film enough to make it better, overall. I wouldn't suggest a re-buy if you already own it, but if you're picking it up for the first time, it's worth considering this edition, unless you really want the extra bump in transfer quality of the Superbit.

The DVD

The Patriot: Extended Cut is a single-disc release.

Video

Appearing in its original widescreen 2.35:1 aspect ratio, The Patriot looks great here, as it did in its earlier theatrical-edition DVD releases. The image is clean and crisp, with colors that look vibrant; contrast is handled well. Overall, there's a nice texture to the image, and no flaws that are apparent to the eye.

Audio

The Dolby 5.1 soundtrack offers an excellent listening experience, with a crisp, well-defined audio track. Both dialogue and sound effects are handled well, and the musical score is blended in very well to the whole. All in all, it's a very pleasing soundtrack. Dolby 2.0 soundtracks are also available in Portuguese, French, and Spanish; English closed captions and Portuguese, French, and Spanish subtitles are included as well.

Extras

The DVD includes the same special features as the earlier releases, minus the commentary and the deleted scenes. The "True Patriots" and "Art of War" featurettes, at ten minutes apiece, give some interesting insights into the historical accuracy of the film. The "Visual Effects Interactive Featurette" presents five different special-effects-intensive scenes from the film, with split screens showing them at different stages of completion, and with visual effects supervisor Stuart Robertson's commentary for each. It's an interesting piece. Rounding out the special features are "Conceptual Art to Film Comparisons," filmographies, and photo galleries.

Final thoughts

I enjoyed The Patriot, and I'd say that the additional material rounds it out nicely, making it a slightly better film than before. While it's not different enough to merit a re-purchase, I'd say that the Extended Cut would be a good choice for viewers who are looking to pick up a copy for the first time, especially since the transfer quality (while not as good as the Superbit) is excellent. Recommended.