Right, well I had expected more of an American Civil War movie, so it was with some disappointment that I came to realize that "Grey Knight" (aka "Ghost Brigade" or "The Killing Box") was laced with supernatural elements to the storyline.

And believe you me, those elements did not make for a good story. In fact, I gave up 1 hour into the foray that is this 1993 movie, out of sheer and utter boredom. I didn't really care an ounce for the storyline, much less the characters in the movie, as they were bland and pointless.

When I saw the movie's cover, and saw that the likes of Martin Sheen, Ray Wise, David Arquette, Billy Bob Thornton, Matt Leblanc and Corbin Bernsen were on the cast list, I assumed that with such names, then of course the movie would have to have some level of decency to it. Yeah, except it didn't actually, and the movie just downright stank.

I will say that "Grey Knight" is definitely in the top 5 of worst American Civil War-based movies that I have had the misfortune of stumbling upon. And if you have any interest in that era, do yourself a great favor and skip on "Grey Knight" like it was last month's carton of milk.

Granted, the costumes and props in the movie were adequate. But they could do only so little for a total lack of interesting storyline and faceless characters.

My rating of "Grey Knight" lands on a more than generous two out of ten stars.

In this Civil War tale that takes place in the spring of 1863, Adrian Pasdar stars as a Union captain named John Harling, who must discover who is slaughtering their troops. The culprits actually turn out to be supernatural soldiers who are butchering troops on BOTH sides of the conflict, in the name of "resurrecting" America. Going along on the journey is a Confederate prisoner of war named Nehemiah Strayn (Corbin Bernsen) who was once Harlings' mentor at West Point, until the war broke out and they chose different sides. Also present is a runaway slave, Rebecca (Cynda Williams),who is mute and who may have the key to defeating the antagonists.

On paper, this must have seemed quite intriguing: a strange, murky blend of the Civil War and horror genres, complete with lots of literate dialogue. The film is fairly entertaining if not all that satisfying. The viewer does get plenty of exposition to at least give them some idea of WHY all of this is happening, but the demonic killers are just not that intimidating. Plus, most of the characters are not fleshed out to a great degree. Still, this feature (also known as "Ghost Brigade", "The Lost Brigade", and "The Killing Box") remains something of a curio, with its mix of atmosphere, violence, and surrealism. Unfortunately, night time scenes are too dark for us to see much of the gory mayhem (devised by the boys at KNB). It also has strong echoes of "Apocalypse Now", since Martin Sheen has a cameo as the general who sends Harling on his mission, and the director is "Heart of Darkness" documentarian George Hickenlooper.

The ensemble cast at least does ensure some interest. Pasdar is nicely under-stated as the hero, while Bernsen has one of his best roles (and gives one of his best performances) as the colourful Strayn. Ray Wise is likewise a standout as a jut jawed Union colonel. The supporting cast consists of a number of familiar faces and stars-to-be: Roger Wilson, Jefferson Mays, Billy Bob Thornton, Dean Cameron, David Arquette, Alexis Arquette, Matt LeBlanc, Josh Evans, Peter Sherayko, and Brent Briscoe. Hickenlooper appears on screen as a painter; adding a degree of unreality is the fact that Thomas the drummer boy is actually played by a female, actress A. J. Langer.

This material had some potential, so it might be interesting to see someone take another crack at it (and hopefully be afforded a larger budget than what these filmmakers had to work with).

Monte Hellman was one of the editors.

Six out of 10.

Set during the American civil war, The Killing Box tells the tale of a Union expedition sent to discover the fate of a group of Union soldiers slaughtered in bizarre circumstances. As the film progresses, it becomes evident that this slaughter isn't just an isolated incident, but rather a series of mass murders of both Union and Confederate soldiers. To complicate the expedition, the Union soldiers have to rely on the aid of a captured Union defector to help investigate the incident. Who or what can be responsible for these grizzly deaths?

The Killing Box takes a fairly well-worn horror/supernatural concept, but turns the concept around by putting the film in the unique setting of the American civil war. The film and its concept had me hooked for the first fifteen minutes, although my attention began to slip away a bit from that point on once the "enemy" was revealed. Quite frankly, the "enemy" were very hokey, and didn't instill any real fear or suspense into the story. I've seen actors at a horror-themed dinner theatre inspire more terror than what the Union soldiers faced in The Killing Box.

Overall The Killing Box tried to be an interesting war/horror hybrid, but fell short of the mark.

5/10