Sam,I have to say that I really enjoyed "The Patriot." It captured the spirit of arrogance that was behind the brutal treatment of our Founding Fathers by the British. As is often the case in the world of "POP" entertainment, however,the movie mixed things up. For example, Green did successfully use the British tactics to work against them by keeping his regulars as a second and primary battle line. The Britts then charged, with empty rifle and bayonet, into a fully loaded line of hardened regulars. But, it was not at Yorktown, which was how I remember the movie.
Alas it was Burgoyne who was known to have "too much" pride. But hey, I loved the movie.
Yeah, Hollyweird has to dramatize for effect. My understanding is that Mel Gibson's part was a combination of characters.