Truman
It Took A Farmer's Hands To Shape A Nation. A Simple Man. A Legendary President.
He was a common man - a failed farmer, shopkeeper and county politician - who became one of America's greatest presidents. A leader of men and a man whose decisions would change the world:
Harry S. Truman.
Gary Sinise is "Give 'Em Hell" Harry Truman, a simple man of the people who led America and guided the world through the most troubled period in history.
It was an era of tremendous unrest and a tough time to be President. Truman led a nation through the end of World War II, the beginning of the Cold War, the struggle for civil rights and the creation of the United Nations. But whatever decisions he shared with the world, one decision had to be his alone. The buck stopped with Truman when America dropped the first atomic bomb, ending the war with Japan. Through it all, Harry Truman lived true to his aim "to serve the people - not to control them." This is his remarkable story.
Member Reviews
Good Work By Gary Sinise In An Interesting But Somewhat Shallow Biography - revsdd
Gary Sinise was well cast as Harry S Truman. I have mixed feelings about Sinise. I like a lot of his supporting work, but when cast in the lead, he's a bit weak and unconvincing, lacking the "presence" to carry a production. That fit Truman, though, who suffered from the same perception. He was a solid politician, a product of the Pendergast Democratic machine in Missouri, but one who largely stayed in the background and resisted becoming front and centre because of his uncertainties about his own ability. Thrust into the presidency by the death of FDR after he had reluctantly agreed to run for Vice President, he came into office at a time when momentous decisions had to be made on a variety of issues, and whether you think he was right or wrong, he made the decisions and never looked back upon them with regret. Looked down upon by his contemporaries, Truman is thought of more highly by historians, and is now widely considered one of the better presidents in US history; one of the best of the 20th century.
Sinise's solid but underwhelming presence was a perfect representation. I also appreciated Diana Scarwid's performance as Bess Truman, the reluctant wife of a politician who nevertheless understood that Truman had to seek election in 1948 or live the rest of his life thinking of himself as an accident. Those good performances aside, though (and there were good supporting performances as well) I found this account of Truman's life somewhat shallow. That was inevitable. How do you do justice to such a life in a couple of hours? Still, this movie left me with little understanding of what you might describe as "the making of a president." There are scenes of Truman's life from his experiences in World War I onward, but they're just scenes; snippets without substance.
This is still an interesting portrayal of an interesting man, though, and if it leads some folk to actually learn more about Truman, then it's served a worthwhile purpose.Solid from a historical point of view - Cricri7
President Truman is not the best known from the United States' history. Others were more famous than him, like Roosevelt who died in office and made Truman president, but he is an important president. He is the one who authorized the bombs to be dropped on Japan at the end of the second world war.
This movie is solid from a historical view point. It depicts Truman in a good light from his humble beginnings through his political life where he remained a humble person, and also not a very rich ex-president. It may not be the most thrilling political movie ever made, but Gary Sinise is absolutely excellent in his portrayal of Truman.
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Good Work By Gary Sinise In An Interesting But Somewhat Shallow Biography - revsdd
Gary Sinise was well cast as Harry S Truman. I have mixed feelings about Sinise. I like a lot of his supporting work, but when cast in the lead, he's a bit weak and unconvincing, lacking the "presence" to carry a production. That fit Truman, though, who suffered ...Solid from a historical point of view - Cricri7
President Truman is not the best known from the United States' history. Others were more famous than him, like Roosevelt who died in office and made Truman president, but he is an important president. He is the one who authorized the bombs to be dropped on ...