Rating: 
Summary: Great Presentation of a Tragic Story,
Review: Highly recommended.A very matter-of-fact approach to describing the tragic story of the Donner party. Heavy reliance on actual diaries and notes those involved. I thought it demonstrated the strength of the human spirit but, more evident, the strength of the women. While many of the men went nuts, several of the mothers somehow manaaged to keep themselves and their children alive. So many twists and turns you would think it was made up. A women watches her husbands heart being cooked on a stick. Failed rescue parties. And, in the ultimate irony, the only member who publicly admitted to the cannibalism ended up opening a restaurant. Cons: Not long enough. Not enough use of maps - would have liked to see more big-picture mapping of events.
Rating:
Summary: Riveting viewing
Review: I first saw "The Donner Party" during it's initial showing on PBS and it caused me to think about the question of what would I do under the same circumstances. Also, I can in all honesty say that my sleap was not restful after first viewing this masterful documentary. It proves that sometimes one does not need to visualy recreate gruesome acts to make us understand how horrifying they are. Ric Burns through the use of voice over narratives, archival photos, and artist renderings really manages to place us in to the desperate situation that the donner party found themselves in. So, I highly recommend that this wonderful docunmentary be veiwed by all who are interested in the history of the United States of America. still, please be aware that this program does become very graphic in the description of the hardship that these doomed individuals indurred on their search for a better life for themselves and their famalies.
Rating:
Summary: A chilling depiction of a real-life horror story!
Review: I first saw this incredible documentary as a child & for several nights afterwords I had terrible nightmares! This is one of the finest PBS documentaries I've ever seen, & it's also one of the most grusome tales in American history. While dozens of books have been written about the Donner Party, I believe this is the only documentary that's been made about it so far. The story is told through eyewitness accounts that make you feel like a member of the doomed wagon train. What's even more interesting is how the weary survivors rebuilt their lives after returning to "civilization". If you want compelling, horrifying, & unforgettable entertainment, this is the documentary to get!
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating documentary
Review: I too remember seeing this documentary on England's Channel 4 and was immediately impressed by the understated tone that let the central characters speak for themselves and the horror that slowly unravels as the snow continues to fall.
It's rare to find a product that receives so many five stars and be so justified.
Rating:
Summary: An amazing documentary
Review: If you don't know the story, you need to see this film. If you do, you need to see this film. Haunting, historical, beautifully acted (voice-overs). You will not soon forget this one.
Rating:
Summary: A stunning tale of bad choices
Review: It is hard to find words to describe this that haven't been used in many earlier reviews --- "haunting, mind-blowing, chilling," all come to mind. Suffice it to say, everyone of us has had a moment in life where we could make the right choice or the wrong choice. All too often, making the wrong choice leads to more wrong choices. Most of the time, the results are unfortunate, and sometimes they are perilous. Rarely are the results as grisly as the fate that befell the Donner Party. As another reviewer noted, these were not bumbling fools done in by their own incompetence. In fact, many members of the Donner Party were intelligent men & women who really should have known better. When sound decisions really counted, they consistently made the wrong choice, and these series of bad choices now means that most of us remember the Donner Party alone out of the thousands of wagon trains that went west in the 19th century. It is an awesome documentary that will not be easily forgotten. The narrative & the music only augment the eerie, depressing quality of the production. Ultimately, it leaves all of us with that nagging question: what would we have done in that same situation?
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding! A must see for everyone!
Review: It seems people must focuse on the eating of flesh however, there is so much more to the story. The music by Angelo Badalamenti is stunning! This story of the journey is inspiring. If pioneers could walk to California just think what we can do with out lives in this day and age. It's a miracle what the human body and spirit can do. The story ends with Virginia Reed whose family never ate flesh saying "I have not wrote you half the trouble we've had, but I have wrote you enough to let you know what trouble is......We have got through with our lives. Don't let this letter dishearten anybody. Remember, never take no cutoffs and hurry along as fast as you can."
Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE MOST TRAGIC TALES OF THE AMERICAN WEST
Review: Like most people raised in the west I had heard the story of the Donner Party many times, though badly and inaccurately told. In fact, the Donner Party was in many cases the butt of many a bad joke rather than the historic and tragic story that should have been told. I blundered onto the Burns' Donner Party documentary on my local PBS station and was immediately corrected of years of misconception. Here is the story, not of a bunch of bumbling fools who planned things badly and suffered the consequences, but rather of a group of well-meaning pioneers who were doomed by the benighted vision of an enterprising fool named Lansford W. Hastings. Bad information led to bad decisions and ultimately to the most tragic of consequences. A marvelous story of the indomitable human spirit and beautifully narrated by David McCulloch (author of Truman, John Adams), The Donner Party will be a haunting addition to the most complete western video collection. This one can absolutely not be missed.
Rating:
Summary: Heartbreaking true story of heroes and villains.
Review: Murder happened in the Sierra-Nevada mountains in the winter of 1946/1947. This is the story of the fabled Donner Party. The heroes were the indian guides who refused to eat human flesh, and were murdered for it. Heroes also were the members of the four rescue parties who fought the worst winter on record to save lives. Heroes were all those who did not forsake humanity to survive. Survival alone isn't worth compromising what your life is supposed to mean. The villains in this story are those who killed to live. This is an astonishingly vivid depiction that draws emotions to the surface and makes you ask: What if? What if just a few of the decisions were slightly altered? And what if it were you up there?
Rating:
Summary: The Donner Party
Review: Outstanding video that tells the tragic story of the ill-fated Donner Party and their attempt to move West in 1846. The story is tragic in the sense that just about anything that could go wrong, did go wrong for these people. I bought this video to show in my history classes several years ago and I still have not tired of it. More importantly, my students, year in and year out, become engrossed in the story of what people will do to survive and perservere and they watch and pay attention to the story. The descriptions of what the suvivors did to survive can be a bit graphic, but not overly so.
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