Rating: 
Summary: A genuine waste of money
Review: After sitting through this series, I was almost at a loss of words for how genuinly bad it was. The idea for the series isn't a bad one, but the absolute lack of quality pushes me away...Michael Kraus is the host, and I can say that he did a pretty good job. He looks like a real person who actually cares about the civil war, and he actually cares about what he is talking about. Kraus obviously didn't film, direct, or edit this series, so there is nothing I can hold against him. Unfortunatly, the numerous bad aspects outweigh the good aspects ten fold. ... Take your money and buy absolutly any other Civil War dvd/video you can find. I guaruntee that whatever you buy, will be much, much better than Civil War Minutes. ...
Rating: 
Summary: Different than all the rest.
Review: If you are looking for a new and unique view of the Civil War, this is it. The way Civil War Minutes focuses on many different soldier accounts and artifacts is as educational as it is entertaining. What appealed to me most were the soldier's letters. They gave views of the war that I have never seen or heard before. Michael Kraus, who stars in the series, really knows his stuff. From the way he spoke of the Civil War artifacts in the series, you know he is more than an actor hired to narrate a documentary. If you want a Civil War box set that is more than just battles, give this DVD series a try. You won't be disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: Next level of presenting the Civil War details
Review: Ken Burns gave us the "Civil War" series. Though some photo sequences did not accurately represent the story properly, it did provided us with a good overview of the events that transpired between the years 1859 through 1865. Ted Turner gave the movie "Gettysburg", which brought the large scale battle arena to the big screen. The History Channel gave us "Civil War Journal", giving good detail to individuals, regiments, and the battles fought. Now Inecom Entertainment has produced the next level of presenting the historical fine details of the Civil War. The accoutrements of the individual foot soldier, the letters they wrote home about the hardships they endured during the war, many interesting artifacts of Civil War period, and a host of other details that are never included in the big productions. This four volume video series does more to fill in the gaps than anything else I know of. As a reenactor with the 123rd NYV, I have a special appreciation for this, the down and dirty as I like to call it. Michael Kraus, also a living historian and reenactor, presents this material in a way that gives life to what is normally just museum artifacts. I would recommend to everyone who wants that next level of understanding of that great conflict that shaped our nation to view this series.
Rating:
Summary: Next level of presenting the Civil War details
Review: Ken Burns gave us the "Civil War" series. Though some photo sequences did not accurately represent the story properly, it did provided us with a good overview of the events that transpired between the years 1859 through 1865. Ted Turner gave the movie "Gettysburg", which brought the large scale battle arena to the big screen. The History Channel gave us "Civil War Journal", giving good detail to individuals, regiments, and the battles fought. Now Inecom Entertainment has produced the next level of presenting the historical fine details of the Civil War. The accoutrements of the individual foot soldier, the letters they wrote home about the hardships they endured during the war, many interesting artifacts of Civil War period, and a host of other details that are never included in the big productions. This four volume video series does more to fill in the gaps than anything else I know of. As a reenactor with the 123rd NYV, I have a special appreciation for this, the down and dirty as I like to call it. Michael Kraus, also a living historian and reenactor, presents this material in a way that gives life to what is normally just museum artifacts. I would recommend to everyone who wants that next level of understanding of that great conflict that shaped our nation to view this series.
Rating: 
Summary: 90 enjoyable and educational minutes...
Review: No, this is not Ken Burns' Civil War. No, it's not History Channel's Civil War Journal. No, it's not Gettysburg, Glory or any of the other fine movies on the Civil War. This is unique, and I found it enjoyable and educational. It's a collection of 5 minute topics -- muskets, carbines, canteens, letters home, letters written to soldiers, drums, music, uniforms -- that are wrapped into 30 minute made-for-TV episode. There is a lot of Civil War paraphanalia shown and analyzed. Taken together, it adds to one's knowledge of Civil War life. I've read quite a bit now on the Civil War -- Shelby Foote, Shaara, etc.. -- and watched every Civil War movie I can find -- Ken Burns, Glory, Gettysburg -- and I can say I found this both educational and enjoyable. I think general viewers, general students of the Civil War, documentary lovers, Civil War reenacters, and many others will enjoy this movie. My personal thanks to the makers of this movie.
Rating:
Summary: 90 enjoyable and educational minutes...
Review: No, this is not Ken Burns' Civil War. No, it's not History Channel's Civil War Journal. No, it's not Gettysburg, Glory or any of the other fine movies on the Civil War. This is unique, and I found it enjoyable and educational. It's a collection of 5 minute topics -- muskets, carbines, canteens, letters home, letters written to soldiers, drums, music, uniforms -- that are wrapped into 30 minute made-for-TV episode. There is a lot of Civil War paraphanalia shown and analyzed. Taken together, it adds to one's knowledge of Civil War life. I've read quite a bit now on the Civil War -- Shelby Foote, Shaara, etc.. -- and watched every Civil War movie I can find -- Ken Burns, Glory, Gettysburg -- and I can say I found this both educational and enjoyable. I think general viewers, general students of the Civil War, documentary lovers, Civil War reenacters, and many others will enjoy this movie. My personal thanks to the makers of this movie.
Rating: 
Summary: Not good value for your dollars!
Review: The Civil War Minutes presents 3 hours of topics. It discusses such topics as a soldier's knapsack or backpack as we call it now. The host will read various letters written by soldiers. The host makes a good presentation of the other subjects as well. The subjects are interesting. The period music is good. But the production of the series does not seem professional. There are times when the background noise, such as screams, will drown the presentation the host is trying to present. After viewing the four-part series I feel disappointment. I feel that I did not get much for my purchase. Personally I could have gotten as much information by spending the day at a Civil War museum and would have been better entertained.
Rating: 
Summary: Civil War Minutes
Review: This DVD is a perfect addition for anyone that is learning about the Civil War in general. Michael Kraus is very informative and his forward approach to presenting the details of soldier life, personal letters and lifestyle is a welcomed sight. His concise details are backed by many true stories. Important items to the everyday soldier such as a canteens, muskets and clothing are presented with historical facts and are often linked to an individual that actually used them. This DVD set is perfect for those new at learning or trying to get a rounded view of soldier life and general information regarding the war. For the experienced reenactor or historian it may be too general. Though I would have to admit that even a historian can learn about a particular soldier from a letter or get new insight from the material. The presentation or filming is sometimes lacking in quality as lighting and sound quality isn't the best at times. The sounds effects are interesting though sometimes overdone. Sometimes the effects overshadow the narration and make it harder to hear. I do have to give credit to the music used as it captured the era and was presented well.
Rating:
Summary: Civil War Minutes
Review: This DVD is a perfect addition for anyone that is learning about the Civil War in general. Michael Kraus is very informative and his forward approach to presenting the details of soldier life, personal letters and lifestyle is a welcomed sight. His concise details are backed by many true stories. Important items to the everyday soldier such as a canteens, muskets and clothing are presented with historical facts and are often linked to an individual that actually used them. This DVD set is perfect for those new at learning or trying to get a rounded view of soldier life and general information regarding the war. For the experienced reenactor or historian it may be too general. Though I would have to admit that even a historian can learn about a particular soldier from a letter or get new insight from the material. The presentation or filming is sometimes lacking in quality as lighting and sound quality isn't the best at times. The sounds effects are interesting though sometimes overdone. Sometimes the effects overshadow the narration and make it harder to hear. I do have to give credit to the music used as it captured the era and was presented well.
Rating:
Summary: Great videos!
Review: This is a great Civil War series! The detail and history are amazing! 5 Stars! I recommend this to everyone I know!
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