The Alamo Movie Essay

In the film The Alamo directed by John Lee Hancock takes place in the early 1800s. During the movie there is a standoff between a group of Texan and Tejano men, led by Davey Crockett and Jim Bowie, and Mexican dictator Santa Anna’s forces at the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas. From watching the movie and doing the research of what actually happened in the Alamo, one has realized that the movie has many inaccuracies and the movie leaves out and changes around what actually happened in real life. The film makers attempted to sacrifice history and facts for the entertainments sake. Both the historical accuracy and the entertainment suffered.

What happened at the Alamo in 1836?

The Alamo began on February 23rd, 1836 which lasted for thirteen days,

and ended on March 6th, 1836. The Alamo was located on the banks of the San Antonio River in San Antonio, Texas. By 1800, the Missionaries were dislodged and their territory was seized for military purposes. Involving soldiers calling the Mission-turned-garrison”El Alamo” after the cottonwood trees surrounding it. Eventually the mission was formally renamed The Alamo. First Spanish soldiers, then eventually Mexican soldiers took over The Alamo. Mexico had gained independence from Spain by the mid 1820s. Settlers from different states started rushing toward Texas. In December of the mid-1830s, a battle for freedom from Mexico developed between Texans and Mexicans. By the middle of February in 1836, things got to be heated and two volunteers, George Collinsworth and Benjamin Milam, drove a group of people to take over the garrison at The Alamo. At that time, Colonel James Bowie and Lieutenant Colonel William B. Travis arranged to defend the Alamo from the Mexicans who were going to take it back. David Crockett landed in February 1836 to take part in the battle. Texan forces were never more than two hundred. The Mexicans were estimated somewhere around one thousand-eight hundred and six thousand. Texans held Gen. Santa Anna off for thirteen days. On March 6th, the Texans were beaten. Santa Anna slaughtered everybody besides a couple, among which was Susannah Dickinson, wife of Commander Almaron Dickinson who was killed in the fight.
What happened in the movie?
The film starts in March 1836 at the site of the Alamo, where collections of Texan guards and Mexican aggressors are strewn over the Alamo. The film then flashes back to a year prior. Sam Houston (Dennis Quaid) goes to a party where he tries to convince people to move to Texas. At the party he meets with David Crockett, and then he explains to Crockett that as a immigrant to Texas, Crockett will get six hundred-forty acres of land of his own choosing. Crockett, with a smile, asks Houston whether this new republic is going to need a president.
Meanwhile, in San Felipe, Texas, the Texas government is meeting to discuss what move to make after the capture by the Texans of the Alamo.

Texas having rebelled against Mexico and its president Santa Anna, who is driving an armed force to retake the Alamo, the Texan War Party requires the Texas armed force to leave Bexar, go into Mexico and face the Mexican forces at the town of Matamoros. As the story progresses, Crockett lands in San Antonio, where he tells a crowd, "I told them folks 'you all can go to hell, I'm going to Texas". He is informed that others are impatient for Santa Anna to arrive now that Crockett is available to battle nearby them to which a confused Crockett answers, "I understood the fighting was over... Ain't it?", implying that perhaps his intention for traveling out to Texas was to look for new opportunities all the more-so than to join the battle for Texas Independence. Santa Clause Anna soon arrives in San Antonio, much to the surprise of the Texan soldiers, who were not anticipating that the Mexican Army should arrive until late March or early April. The Texans resign to the Alamo compound in spite of its powerlessness, and start strengthening it as best as they can. Aside the chaos, Travis was writing letters requesting help. Just a couple dozen men arrive to go along with

them.
Santa Anna’s army surrounds the Alamo and the battle begins. Travis then fires eighteen-pound cannon on the south-west wall, blocking Bowie’s attempt at diplomacy. This ends the chance to standoff the Mexican attack and Bowie returns to Travis to tell him that Santa Anna has offered surrender at discretion, but the men stayed and fought the Mexican forces. Everybody was slaughtered except for one woman; her name was Susannah Dickinson (Laura Clifton).
Crockett, having stayed alert throughout the night, checks the walls and notices the approaching Mexican army. The Texans are stirred by his first shot and start racing to their posts. The Texans also hear the battle cry of the Mexican soldiers: "Viva Santa-Anna!" After a long, brutal fight the Mexicans rupture the north wall of the mission where Travis is killed, shot in the head by a youthful Mexican soldier. A small group of Mexican soldiers, with axes and crowbars, ambush and break down doors of the west walls, while another small group storms the southwest wall. The few surviving Texans fall back to the buildings, where they are all slaughtered. Attackers find the laid up Bowie in his room, where he shoots his gun and attempts to fight with his knife, however is quickly beaten to death. Crockett and the last four defenders retreat into the chapel where they fight their last stand. Crockett is taken prisoner. In a final act of defiance, he mockingly offers to lead Santa Anna and the Mexican Army to Sam Houston so as to guarantee the formers' safety; Santa Anna immediately arranges Crockett to be executed.
Days later, Houston forms another army and quickly goes to fight the Mexican Army. When they arrived at the site of the Mexican Army, the Mexican soldiers were shocked they showed up to fight. Minutes later, the vengeful Texans ambush the Mexican forces making Santa Anna surrender to the wounded Houston. This declared Texan independence.
What are the historical inaccuracies of the movie?