G&G has no strong story line, no development of character -- what screen writers call the "character arc." There was no clear protagonist, although Jackson got a lot of screen time. The protagonist in a classic American film will have a stated goal. Rhett Butler wanted to hear Scarlett say she loved him. Scarlett wanted never to be hungry again. Luke Skywalker wanted to "go to Alderan and become a Jedi like my father." Jim Lovell in "Apollo 13" wanted to walk on the moon.
You can see this in any number of films. Then typically, the protagonist (sometimes defined as the character who undergoes the most change during the story) is presented with a series of challenges, which he/she then overcomes. "Apollo 13" offers a great example of this. The one crewman is sick, an engine malfunctions during lift-off, the docking to the LEM is a challenge, after the explosion they might not have enough power, they have to align the capsule manually, the parachutes might not open, there is a storm in the recovery area, and so forth.
Once in a while, the protagonist is presented in full form and doesn't really grow or change. "Patton" is an example of this. Patton is pretty much the same from the beginning of the film to the end, but that is hard to pull off.
G&G had none of that. It was just a bad film, from what I understand is a bad book.
Walt
What on earth are you talking about, Walt? Jackson had a goal in that movie. You just don't like what that goal was - "drive the yankee invaders from our sacred land."