FAQ for
Cold Mountain (2003) More at IMDbPro »

The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags have been used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.

For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for Cold Mountain can be found here.

Yes. Cold Mountain is a 1997 novel by North Carolinlian author Charles Frazier. It was adapted for the movie by English film-maker Anthony Minghella, who also directed this movie.

Cold Mountain is a work of fiction. However, the main character, W.P. Inman, is based on a real person. William P. Inman is an ancestor of author Charles Frazier. In the last line of the book, Frazier apologizes for taking "great liberties" with Inman's life. A website that explains it further can be seen here.

The beginning of the movie portrays The Battle of the Crater, which occurred outside Petersburg, VA on July 30, 1864.

The movie begins in 1861 when Ada Monroe (Nicole Kidman) and her father, the Reverend Monroe (Donald Sutherland), move to Black Cove farm near the Cold Mountain community in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, where Ada falls in love with W.P. Inman (Jude Law). It follows Inman through his three-year stint as a Confederate soldier during the Civil War and then his attempts to get back to Ada. Meanwhile, Ada's father has died and, in order to keep the farm going, Ada has taken in a feisty young woman named Ruby Thewes (Renée Zellweger) who knows all about the workings of a good farm. The movie ends some dozen or so years in the future, after Ada and Inman have reunited and their daughter Grace (Kristen Nicole LaPrade) is about eight years old.

Yes. Brendan Gleeson, who plays Ruby's father Stobrod, is an accomplished fiddle player. He is credited with performing three fiddletunes in the movie: Bonaparte's Retreat, Ruby with the Eyes that Sparkle, and Sittin' on Top of the World. Incidentally, Jack White, who plays the mandolin as Georgia, is also an accomplished musician, playing guitar and singing vocals with two different bands, The White Stripes and The Raconteurs. White is also credited with performing three songs in the movie: Christmas Time Will Soon Be Over, Wayfaring Stranger, and Great High Mountain.

That's bluegrass musician Alison Krauss. She is credited with performing two songs in the movie: You Will be My Ain True Love and The Scarlet Tide.

Many viewers think Bosie (Charlie Hunnam) was an albino with his pale skin and white hair. It is mentioned in the book that he had frequent and random nosebleeds that made him unsuitable as a soldier, but no specific disease or condition is named. A few possibilities that viewers have mentioned include anemia, some sort of bleeding disorder such as Von Willebrand's disease (hemophilia), cancer, or syphillis.

One possibility is that Ruby was jealous, but most viewers of the movie don't see it that way. Most feel that Ruby was genuinely happy that Ada and Inman had found each other again, which is why she vacated her bed and went to sleep in the room with her father. At the same time, however, she was no doubt worried about what would become of her future at Black Cove, her first real home. Most likely, she was simply afraid of losing all that she's worked for and all that she hoped for with the farm now that Inman had returned.

After finally reuniting, Ada and Inman marry each other and have their night together in an abandoned shack at the Old Cherokee settlement where Inman, Snobrod, and Ruby are hiding from the Confederate Home Guard. In the morning, Ruby and Ada head for home first, but they are intercepted by the Home Guard. When Inman and Snobrod catch up, they fire on the Home Guard, killing all of them except for Bosie. Inman goes after Bosie on horseback, and they wind up facing each other in a standoff. Bosie pulls out a concealed gun and fires at Inman. Inman also gets off a shot, killing Bosie. Unfortunately, Inman is mortally wounded and dies in Ada's arms. Flash forward to Easter Sunday, some nine years in the future. Snobrod is playing his fiddle while family and friends sit around a table set up in the front yard of Black Cove. Ruby has married Georgia, and they have two children. Ada sits with her daughter Grace, who was conceived on Ada and Inman's wedding night.