The Civil War - A Film by Ken Burns

Rating:
Summary: Worth Seeing-But Keep An Open Mind
Review: Ken Burns did a magnificent job making a multi-hour
production using archival still photography and still
making it interesting to the viewer with no background
in the Civil War. However, as other reviewers have
pointed out, political correctness does take its toll.
A good example is the way General George McClellan is
treated. Although it is pointed out that he built
the Union's Army of the Potomac from scratch and that
his men loved him, he is presented by Burns, who oversimplifies the War as being a crusade to "free the slaves", as being something of a cross between a traitor and coward for not pushing his clear superiority during the Peninsular Campaign.
The way this crucial attempt by the Union to capture
Richmond early in the war is portrayed leaves the viewer
puzzled as to why McClennan decided to call off the
offensive in spite of having won several battles.
Burns implies that McClennan didn't really believe
in the cause and was looking for an excuse to back
out it. Further investigation on my part has revealed
that McClennan had very poor information about the
strength and intentions of the enemy and was working
under immense pressure from the political echelons
back in Washington which interfered in the military
decision-making process. It is unclear that any
other commander would have had any more success.
What is particularly interesting is that historian
Shelby Foote who appears in the series defends McClennan
in his famous history of the Civil War so apparently
he didn't have that much input. The fact is that the
Union wasn't able to really decisively defeat the
Confederacy until it found a General, U S Grant, who
was willing to go all the way with a war of attrition
and accept high casualties in order to gain victory.
On the other hand, obscure aspects of the war are
brought out that are not really dealt with in other
sources. One good example is the series destroys
the myth of the "united South" pointing out that there
was tremendous opposition to secession. Even in a
"Deep South" state like Alabama, only 55% of the population
voted for secession in a plebescite. Soldiers from every
state in the Confederacy except South Carolina provided
regiments for the Union Army. It is unfortunate that
information about what happened to these Southern
Loyalists after the War is not provided because these Loyalist sentiments
seemed to have been submerged during Reconstruction.
It is for these reasons that I would recommend that the viewer use this series as an introduction to the subject, but then
pursue further reading to get a clearer view of this
immense subject.

Rating:
Summary: Reviews betray our historical ignorance
Review: The ignorance of the average American as to our own history is as well known as it is appalling. Into this void comes a "documentary" which employs original photographs and text in such a way as to command instant currency. The method, with its haunting faces and powerful music combined with the unvarnished prose of common 19th century Americans is powerful. It has been manipulated and factually stripped it remains as propaganda. How?
New England capitalized its industrial revolution on the slave trade, shouting down demands it be censured in the Declaration of Independence and abolished in the Constitutional Convention. New England mills fueled demands for slave produced cotton while tariffs and taxes fell (abt 90%) on the south and public spending benefitted (the same %) the north. The 1860 census proves 95% of the slaves were owned by just 5% of the population. All airbrushed, never mentioned, completely overlooked. A moral crusade to liberate the slave? Utter hogwash.
Prisoner camps. Grant and Stanton stopped the prisoner exchange so the numbers and suffering of POWs exploded. Before it was over over 30,000 on both sides died, 10% of the total casualties. Burns "incisive" documentary focuses on Andersonville virtually alone. Want to read about a travesty of justice? Investigate (really investigate) the so-called trial of Henry Wirtz of Andersonville. Sip on this while you do, the largest mass grave in the Western Hemisphere is in Chicago (Oakwood Cemetery) and is filled with the bodies of CONFEDERATE POWs. (Read Geo Levy's To Die in Chicago)
The final insult to the historical record concerns Burns treatment of the corrupt era known as "Reconstruction". He paints it as a benevolent reunion which remade the nation along enlightened principles. White southerners were disenfranchised (could not vote or run for office) and Blacks were cynically employed as puppets. When the north grew bored with their social experiment they withdrew, leaving only blacks to face the rage and hatred of a devastated and humiliated south. By 1877 the majority of wealth was in the hands of 5 men. The Republic was effectively dead. The Constitution had been gutted (read Adam's When in the Course of Human Events)and remains an emasculated shadow of its original wisdom.
No, this is a well executed docu-drama which pretends at history very persuasively. It is in the end politically correct and historically wrong.


Rating:
Summary: The Civil War - A Film by Ken Burns
Review: This one is superb........well worth the money..it can be purchased for much less at eBay though. Shelby Foote's comments thoughout the film are outstanding. He is truly a southerner and you will enjoy his thoughts relative to the film. I highly recommend the film and will be glad to answer any questions anyone might have regarding the film. You can email me at [e-mail] with your questions!

Rating:
Summary: Get the best version
Review: It should be recognised that there are three versions of the series in circulation. The original series itself was released in 3 versions: complete (with varying episode lengths), slighly shortened (to provide similar length shows) and short version (about 1 hour per episode. The slightly shortened version was the one initially distributed on Video and DVD. This is the one that has the wobbly transfer. The new DVD version (2003) is a digitally enhanced full release. Ken Burns returned to the original film to achieve a new hi-resolution transfer and then proceded to digitally clean it up. This is demonstrated in a mini-doco on the DVD. No one questions the quality of the series and with this release the reproduction quality matches it. Ken Burns turned me into a Civil War buff and collector. I still found the series highly moving even after several viewings.