Sanford Native Appears As Extra In Mel Gibson's 'The Patriot'

The Revolutionary War movie "The Patriot," starring Mel Gibson opened Wednesday with several local people making appearances as extras.

Kirk Smith of Sanford made an appearance at his local cinema to promote the movie starring Mel Gibson. The retired paratrooper and history teacher is a Revolutionary War buff who took part in the filming last fall in South Carolina.

"It portrays a factor that built this country to what it is today," Smith says. "A lot of people are missing that."

Smith says the costumes in the movie are very authentic, but he says some of the plot is pure Hollywood.