“Now It Concerns Us”: Shenandoah (Part 2)

Shenandoah is a watershed movie for a number of reasons in my view.  As I mentioned in my last post, the movie steers clear of many of the traditional Lost Cause themes that can be found in earlier movies.  What I continue to be struck by, however, is the avoidance of any reference to what the war is about.  It is true that Charlie Anderson emphasizes the importance of slavery in one of the earlier scenes, but that particular discussion is disconnected from what comes after.  In the wedding scene where Sam marries Jenny the young officer is forced to immediately depart for the war.  As he says goodbye to his new bride she asks if he understands what the war is about.  Sam’s inability to offer any sort of response gives the scene a tragic quality as the young couple is split along with their future in doubt.  Another scene set on the Anderson porch also offers an opportunity to discuss the war.  Charlie steps outside with the doctor who has just delivered a child and asks him how he feels about the fact that Virginia is losing the war.  The doctor shares that one son is buried in Pennsylvania, another is home with tuberculosis, and a third is off riding with General Forrest.  In this scene the war is reduced to the personal loss and sadness experienced by the doctor.  The attention to cause and justification that is present in earlier movies is replaced by innocent scenes such as this one where Charlie Anderson offers Sam advice on how interpret the behavior of women.  No one seems to know what the war is about.

Later in the movie Charlie Anderson visits the family grave site that at one time only included his wife, but now includes his own children who he so desperately tried to shield from the war.  He admits, “There is nothing much I can tell you about this war…”  The scene once again steers clear of anything divisive about the war by blaming the politicians and allows the audience to embrace the emotional loss that accompanies all wars.

There are two additional scenes that I want to mention.  The first is a wonderful scene that includes “Federal agents” who have come to the Anderson farm to confiscate their horses.  This scene follows the strong anti-state theme that was mentioned in yesterday’s post.  What I find interesting is that the individuals in question are never identified as representatives of the Confederate government, though the government did indeed follow a policy of confiscation throughout much of the war.  Was this a conscious effort not to alienate any particular segment of the viewing population and maintain the neutral stance of Charlie Anderson?  I don’t know.

The most interesting scene thus far is the emancipation moment involving the young slave boy.  The viewer is not exposed to any working slaves other than one moment early on outside of the church.  Slaves are seen as drivers, including the slave boy who is friends with the youngest Anderson boy.  In a remarkable scene that takes place following a brief skirmish the two boys are confronted by Union soldiers, two of whom are black.  [Note: Black Union soldiers did not serve in the Shenandoah Valley.]  The young Anderson boy is taken prisoner owing to his kepi which he discovered in a stream earlier in the movie.  He asks the young slave to run home to inform his father of what has happened.  In that moment one of the black soldiers informs him that he does not have to do so because he is now free.  It’s an incredibly brief moment, but crucial nevertheless.

Only after learning of his son’s capture does the war finally matter to Charlie Anderson: “Now it concerns us.”