''The Last Confederate: The Story of Robert Adams'' is a 2007 American war film starring Julian Adams,

Amy Redford Amy Hart Redford (born October 22, 1970) is an American actress and filmmaker. Early life Amy Redford's parents are historian and environmental activist Lola Van Wagenen and film director and actor Robert Redford. She received her BA in D ...

, Gwendolyn Edwards, Eric Holloway, Joshua Lindsey,

Mickey Rooney Mickey Rooney (born Joseph Yule Jr.; other pseudonym Mickey Maguire; September 23, 1920 – April 6, 2014) was an American actor. In a career spanning nine decades, he appeared in more than 300 films and was among the last surviving stars of the ...

and Tippi Hedren. The movie, released in 2007 by ThinkFilm, centers on the life of Captain Robert Adams II and his Northern bride, Eveline McCord, and received 10 awards on the film festival circuit. The film was produced by

Weston Adams Weston Woollard Adams (August 9, 1904 – March 19, 1973) was an American hockey executive with the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League. He is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Early life Adams was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. ...

, Julian Adams and Billy Fox. The film was titled '' Strike the Tent'' by the filmmakers, and on the film festival circuit, and was changed by the distributor before the release.

Plot

The love story of Confederate Captain Robert Adams II and a northern girl, Eveline McCord. The story begins with Captain Adams falling in love with Eveline, a governess from Pennsylvania who moved to South Carolina to work for Robert's first cousin, Governor

James Hopkins Adams James Hopkins Adams (March 15, 1812 – July 13, 1861) was an American politician who served as the 66th governor of South Carolina from 1854 to 1856. He also served in the South Carolina Legislature. Early life and education Adams was born i ...

. As they fall in love in antebellum South Carolina, Captain Adams is launched into the outbreak of the American Civil War, despite the protests of Eveline. The film follows Adams through battles in Virginia, and his capture and subsequent imprisonment in the Federal Military Prison in

Elmira, New York Elmira () is a city and the county seat of Chemung County, New York, United States. It is the principal city of the Elmira, New York, metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses Chemung County. The population was 26,523 at the 2020 cens ...

. The film was written and produced by the descendants of Robert and Eveline. The film addresses the issue of slavery in a number of scenes. One in particular shows Adams encountering an African American woman in the woods at night who has just buried her child. She tells Adams “You’ve made a hard bed for yourself, and now you’ve got to lie in it.” Another scene shows Eveline speaking with the character of Elizabeth about her coming freedom and what she will do.

Cast

Release

The film premiered at the 2005 Long Island International Film Expo. It was given a limited release, opening in theaters in Los Angeles, Nashville, Houston,

Columbia, S.C. Columbia is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of South Carolina. With a population of 136,632 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is List of municipalities in South Carolina, the second-largest ...

, Charleston, S.C. and other cities.

Critical response

Michael Ordoña said in the '' Los Angeles Times'' that the film's "unapologetically romantic views of war and the Old South leave a bitter aftertaste". Paul Welcom of ''

L.A. Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin, who served as president and editor until 1991. Voice Media Group sold the paper in late 2017 to Semanal Media LLC, whose paren ...

'' called it "a vanity project of the most indulgent order".

Home media

''The Last Confederate: The Story of Robert Adams'' was released on DVD in 2007, courtesy of ThinkFilm. Bonus features include a featurette, outtakes, and deleted scenes.

Accolades

* Breckenridge Festival of Film Award for Best of the Fest Drama — Winner * Great Lakes Film Festival Best Narrative Feature Award — Winner * Great Lakes Film Festival Best Actor Award ( Julian Adams) — Winner * Long Island International Film Expo Jury Award — Winner * Park City Film Music Festival Audience Choice Award — Winner * Solstice Film Festival Best Cinematography Award — Winner * Tahoe Reno International Film Festival Best New American Film Award — Winner * Westwood Film Festival Sony 'Like No Other' Award — Winner

References

External links

* *
The Last Confederate: The Story of Robert Adams

ThinkFilm

Los Angeles Times review of "The Last Confederate"

Monsters and Critics review of "The Last Confederate"

{{DEFAULTSORT:Last Confederate: The Story of Robert Adams, The 2007 films American war drama films 2000s war drama films American Civil War films Films scored by Atli Örvarsson 2000s English-language films 2000s American films English-language war drama films