Social accuracy
-
Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — The Four Feathers
d-phillipson-446-481929 — 13 years ago(September 23, 2012 07:34 AM)
The main contrast with the 1939 Korda film is that that got the social environment right and the Hollywood film badly wrong, e.g.
- The regiment's "shipping out" = US 20th century usage.
- Hero Harry appears in London in civilian clothes first wearing a cloth cap (worn by gentlemen only for hiking or shooting sports, never "in town,") secondly hatless. No gentlemsn ever appeared hatless in public.
- The desert march shows officers on camels (OK) armed with rifles (wrong.) Rifles were rankers weapons; officers carried only pistols and sword.
- In Egypt, the army buys materials with paper currency. It should have been gold coin.
- After the disaster, an officer in uniform addresses a public meeting about government policy. This was strictly forbidden (and officers did not wear uniform when in civilian society.)
The general point is that Victorian army officers followed a strict code of behavior that governed what they did. This is what the story The Four Feathers is about. The Hollywood version ignored or obscured this.
-
ccorraliza — 11 years ago(December 28, 2014 06:30 PM)
Officer could use a long gun. Burnaby has a hunting shotgun in the actual canpaign.
I believe some British officers used carbines when in the mounted rifleman role in the Zulu War. Hlobane comes to mind.
But yes I thought it was unusual as well. Mounted rifleman column I thought.