MovieChat Forums > In the Electric Mist (2009) Discussion > Were the Confederate soldiers ghosts, ...

Were the Confederate soldiers ghosts, hallucinations, re-enactors?

posted 9 years ago by blaine3-2
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Were the Confederate soldiers ghosts, hallucinations, re-enactors or all of the above? At first I thought they were meant to be ghosts, or hallucinations. Now I tend more to thing they were re-enactors in character MOST of the time.

In the early scenes John Bell Hood is seen among the extras on the movie set. Film producers often use re-enactors as extras for authenticity. Many stay in character all the time when they are in uniform I know from personal experience.

So my thoughts are that the Jones character was a history buff especially Hood, he had read much about him. Under the influence of LSD he stumbles across the re-enactors camp (yes they live this way when in character) The Hood character was a re-enactor at that point. He tries to help Jones as Hood without endangering himself as all of the informants did giving general clues and advice.

LSD will cause flashbacks so when he is sitting on the porch I think the General was a hallucination as when it cuts to a long shot the General is gone.

I dont understand the Gettysburg reference and why Jones was confused about the time line I have to go back and revisit that scene.

[–] robble-1 9 years ago

I can't answer all of your questions because it's been awhile since I've read the book and watched BUT the soldiers are to be considered ghosts. Whether it's all in his mind or real, they're ghosts. Dave is always a haunted man. Burke usually writes about haunted men. His Texas lawyer character is haunted by a friend he accidentally killed when they were law officers.

[–] LTUM 9 years ago

i am not sure what you mean by gettysburg. repost when you resolve that please

i too was confused at first about the night scene with the red light, because it seemed like it was movie extras form the movie they were shooting nearby, so i connected the dots like you and assumed they were real

but then as the convo proceeded and the eyes were 'dark and hollow' lol etc then i gathered he was meant to be a ghost. cool scene though. i got chills from that red light across the water once i connected that they were meant to be 'ghosts'. dang man there's just something exciting and electric about the idea of someone, anyone, (me?) bridging separate eras, or in reliving (or continuing to live) an era from long ago. that's just butterflies inducing. like when you have a real ghost experience and you get those chills on the spine lol it has happened to me

i am a fan of reenactors too. i live near andersonville and for many years watched the battles there. havent been in a while but it was great fun

i liked the hood character. i think he was the best part of the movie for me, the part that will stay with me. it was somehow soothing/comforting

"As the day hits the night we will sit by candlelight, we will laugh we will sing..."