Benedict Arnold: A Question of Honor

Although this made-for-TV movie is slightly lacking in both effects and actor talent, the story of the great American traitor is told in its entirety fairly eloquently. Many Americans know Benedict Arnold only as a traitor. Few know the circumstances that drove him to treason.

Arnold is clearly depicted as a fiery and stubborn man, quick to anger and even faster to challenge offenders to a duel. His actions at Saratoga make him a hero, but his praise is bestowed upon his superior officer, Horatio Gates, whose orders he had to defy to win the day. Shot in the leg and permanently crippled, the wound is clean but bitterness festers in his soul.

The film portrays Arnold’s increasing frustration with Congress and his country with surprising skill. When George Washington makes Arnold the military governor of Philadelphia, his anger is appeased somewhat, and he sets about doing what is asked of him: diffusing tension between Loyalists and rebels. The movie makes his unconventional solution to this problem, a banquet, amusing as well as tense, probably an accurate depiction. The only point on which a viewer may be critical is Arnold’s excessive and, to be honest, sickening flirtatious nature when around the future Mrs. Arnold. Yes, he was infatuated. No, the producers did not do well in attempting to duplicate his 18^th century pick-up lines.

As a whole, Arnold’s bitterness was well-shown throughout the film. Knowing the inevitable conclusion only made it more horrible to watch General Washington hand over West Point to his most trusted officer. Mrs. Arnold’s influence was certainly marked. Had it not been for her, Benedict Arnold may very well have died an American hero. But then again, the film made a psychic out of Arnold’s British commander by having him comment that Arnold’s betrayal had united the country in a way that would ensure its eventual victory over Great Britain.

All in all, “Benedict Arnold: A Question of Honor” was an interesting watch if not brilliantly filmed.