Great Moments in Cinema: My Compliments to the General

 

The classic movie biography, Patton (1970) has become so closely associated with General George S. Patton, Jr., that we are sometimes in danger of forgetting that Patton sounded nothing like the late George C. Scott.  A more accurate portrayal, considering Patton’s high-pitched voice, would have been to have the voice of Patton voice acted by the late Truman Capote!   Patton had the gift of demanding instant attention when he spoke, and keeping that attention skillfully by mixing drama, humor, theatrical poses and raw force of personality.  All these elements are skillfully captured in the Patton film. Half homage and half put on, each sequence in the film skillfully gives us a composite image of the man.

 

 

Here is the unforgettable opening to the film where the Patton personae is firmly fixed in our minds from the outset of the film:

 

Like any truly great work of art, the Patton film gets some of the details wrong, but captures the spirit of the person depicted completely.

 

0 0 votes
Article Rating
5 Comments
Oldest
Newest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Foxfier
Admin
Sunday, June 11, AD 2023 6:19am

My favorite nitpicky thing is– Patton never wore all the ribbons and medals shown in the film.

With one exception.

His wife wanted a picture with all of his bling, so .. he put on all his bling and there’s ONE photograph, taken in his back yard, because Mrs. George Patton is not someone you cross, even if you are George Patton. ^.^

Frank
Frank
Sunday, June 11, AD 2023 6:54am

Great anecdote, FF. Good to know that Gen. Patton obeyed the First Commandment of a Happy Marriage: When Mama is happy, everyone’s happy. 😉

Art Deco
Art Deco
Monday, June 12, AD 2023 9:59am

A more accurate portrayal, considering Patton’s high-pitched voice, would have been to have the voice of Patton voice acted by the late Truman Capote!

Capote’s voice was unusually reedy, somewhat muffled, and was slightly sibilant (as is common among homosexual men). Patton sounded nothing like that. Capote was also quite diminutive – around about 5’3″. Rex Reed might be closer to the mark.

Art Deco
Art Deco
Monday, June 12, AD 2023 1:21pm

Capote had few acting credits to his name. This is a better example of his speaking voice:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atPaVIilEqk&t=83s

Scroll to Top