The Alamo Then And Now

April 19, 2004 0:53 PDT - By Scott Holleran - Features

Though the story of the siege at the Alamo has been told in movies many times, John Wayne's epic in 1960 and Disney's current release, co-written and directed by John Lee Hancock, stand out as the most widely known. A comparison of the two versions, both titled The Alamo, reveals crucial differences. Note: this chart contains spoilers.

<TABLE id=table9 cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=5 width="100%" border=0> <TBODY> <TR> <TD bgColor=#dcdcdc>Aspect</TD> <TD bgColor=#dcdcdc>Wayne's Alamo</TD> <TD bgColor=#dcdcdc>Disney's Alamo</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Length</TD> <TD>161 minutes</TD> <TD>137 minutes</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Battle action</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Starts after 90 minutes</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Starts after 45 minutes</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Real-life War</TD> <TD>Cold War against communist Soviet Union</TD> <TD>Undeclared war against radical Islam</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Writers</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>James Edward Grant</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Leslie Bohem, Stephen Gaghan, Hancock</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Director</TD> <TD>John Wayne</TD> <TD>John Lee Hancock</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Why fight?</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Freedom</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Mixed reasons; blood, need, power</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Who's right?</TD> <TD>Texans</TD> <TD>It depends</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Who wins</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Mexico</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>After losing Alamo, Texas wins at San Jacinto</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Gen. Santa Anna</TD> <TD>Ruben Padilla, who barely appears</TD> <TD>Emilio Echevarria, major character</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Santa Anna portrayal</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Worthy opponent but tyrant</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Tyrant but he has a point, too</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Davy Crockett</TD> <TD>John Wayne, showy but heroic</TD> <TD>Billy Bob Thornton, showy and conflicted</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Crockett's Fate</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Killed in battle</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Executed after battle</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Jim Bowie</TD> <TD>Richard Widmark, drunken then sober</TD> <TD>Sluggish Jason Patric, drunken then ill</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Bowie's fate</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Falls ill late in struggle; killed while bed-ridden</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Falls ill early in struggle; killed while bed-ridden</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>William Travis</TD> <TD>Laurence Harvey, principled then vindicated</TD> <TD>Patrick Wilson, principled but flawed</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Travis' fate</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Killed in battle</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Killed in battle</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Sam Houston</TD> <TD>Lumbering Richard Boone</TD> <TD>Brooding Dennis Quaid</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Women</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Linda Cristal as Flaca, loyal wife who stays, blind wife</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>A few minor female characters</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Women's fate</TD> <TD>Allowed by Santa Anna to leave</TD> <TD>Unknown</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Romance</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>The Duke's Davy Crockett flirts with Flaca</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>None</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Alamo Mexicans</TD> <TD>Absent</TD> <TD>Present but conflicted</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Slaves</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>One who fights with Texans</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Two; one flees, the other stays</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Teen idol</TD> <TD>Frankie Avalon</TD> <TD>None</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Fight style</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Defiant</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Strong but weary</TD></TR> <TR> <TD>Final siege</TD> <TD>Daylight</TD> <TD>Predawn darkness</TD></TR> <TR> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>Tagline</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>The mission that became a fortress, the fortress that became a shrine.</TD> <TD bgColor=#f4f4ff>You will never forget.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

RELATED LINKS

• 2/18/04 - Diluted History Hurts Disney's 'Alamo'

• Review: The Alamo