I have many favourite films. The ironic thing is that some of our favourite cinematic moments may not necessarily belong to a favourite movie.
Patton is not my favourite movie, but I am enchanted by its opening scene. In fact, I would have to list it as being #1 on my favourite movie moment for this reason:
Very few cinematic moments can compare with the potency of that imagery; George C. Scott as General Patton, at ramrod attention before that gargantuous American flag. What propells you further into its grip is his first line in his address to the troops: "I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor bastard die for his country."
For someone like myself, a "feel the love" spewing pacifist, it is a strange choice. Patton himself would probably concur with another one of his classic comments: "You know as much about war as you do about fornicating." But I am drawn to the complex and paradoxical. George C. Scott's performance was sheer perfection in portraying the paradox of Patton's character: A magalomanic and jingoist, but a poet and philosopher as well. Unpredictability juxtaposed by dependability. Military precision peppered by non-conformity.
But I suppose the defining parallelism is that he knew what it was like to be in danger - to be afraid. He recognized that the real enemy is letting that fear overtake attainment.
Maybe it's the metaphor that melds me to that image. Life is that ultimate battlefield of loss and contradiction. In war, we fight for peace. In life we often lose the courage of character in that quest to win.
Patton is not my favourite movie, but I am enchanted by its opening scene. In fact, I would have to list it as being #1 on my favourite movie moment for this reason:
Very few cinematic moments can compare with the potency of that imagery; George C. Scott as General Patton, at ramrod attention before that gargantuous American flag. What propells you further into its grip is his first line in his address to the troops: "I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor bastard die for his country."
For someone like myself, a "feel the love" spewing pacifist, it is a strange choice. Patton himself would probably concur with another one of his classic comments: "You know as much about war as you do about fornicating." But I am drawn to the complex and paradoxical. George C. Scott's performance was sheer perfection in portraying the paradox of Patton's character: A magalomanic and jingoist, but a poet and philosopher as well. Unpredictability juxtaposed by dependability. Military precision peppered by non-conformity.
But I suppose the defining parallelism is that he knew what it was like to be in danger - to be afraid. He recognized that the real enemy is letting that fear overtake attainment.
Maybe it's the metaphor that melds me to that image. Life is that ultimate battlefield of loss and contradiction. In war, we fight for peace. In life we often lose the courage of character in that quest to win.
Last edited: