Rating: 
Summary: Very Objective
Review: This is a very objective and fair documentary including commentaries from both sides of the conflict. It is a clear and accurate account of the history.Although it might miss some details, the comments made by the people who took part in these events are pricless for accurate rendition of what actually happened.
Rating: 
Summary: gripping and genuinely unbiased British documentary
Review: This is one of the most gripping documentaries I've ever seen. The more nobel aspects, and the less morally sound aspects of both sides are covered in detail. Excellent work created by 1 Palestinian and 1 Israeli for the BBC (even though the blurb above calls it a PBS show, and indeed so does the generic intro on the DVD - it was actually made by the BBC, not an American company, just thought I'd clear that up)
Rating:
Summary: the naked truth...
Review: This is the only objective report I ever came across.All the ones
I watched or read before are biased -99% of them favoring the jews.This DVD , in contrast , shows the naked truth of how the jews under the cover of British colonialism came to Palestine as illegal immigrants and took over...
I wish I had 6 billion copies to give to the whole world for free so that they see the naked truth...
Rating:
Summary: A balanced perspective is necessary
Review: This series is a beginning for giving people a balanced perspective on the issue, and the reviews posted for this DVD remind one of just how hard that is. Evil Arabs! Evil Jews! They did the WORST thing in history! Settlers took our land for the ONLY time in history! Hello?! Anybody home? This is the oldest story in the world--people take other peoples land, treaties are made, treaties are broken, wars happen, counter-wars happen. If you can get out of your own biased box and get some perspective, you'd all see that the actual news in Israel is how little blood has actually been spilled considering how much both sides resent eachother. There is no good solution to fights like this, but it's worth remembering: things could get a lot worse! Of course both sides have been and are wrong--both sides have been and are right. You cannot possibly redo the past, so you have to keep coming back to table and realize that a better future for everyone--Palestinian and Israeli--is in everyones' interests. War is really not as much fun as peace and prosperity guys. You could both have it. Just keep on trying and it will eventually work, then the war will fade into the past, like hundreds--thousands--of other similar situations throughout history. I don't have a dog in this fight, which is why I just wish you'd all step back and see how much there still is to save for each side and not risk destroying eachother totally.
Rating:
Summary: If you will only view one video on the Middle East conflict,
Review: this should be the one!This accurate and often-haunting exposition of the Israeli-Arab conflict will challenge your preconceptions and highlight the bravery, treachery, deceit and nobility displayed in the last 50 years. Historical footage is mixed with incredible interviews of high-level people. This video would be a great bargain if it cost three times as much...
Rating:
Summary: Unbiased and Informative
Review: To get the most out of this video or DVD set, one must be able to approach the subject without preconceptions, without beliefs that exist in the lack of understanding, and without bias towards a particular religion. Biblical interpretations of who had what first along with English interpretations of Arabic text only polarize an issue that needs no more polarization. The divine right to a land that has been shared for thousands of years has led to the murder of thousands of innocent people. The exiling of, the discrimination against, and the murder of the members of a particular religious group undermines the foundation of almost every religion on Earth. The 50 Years War gives us the rare opportunity to see the middle east conflict for what it is, and not for what it is thought to be. It is a war of deep-seeded hatred that is fueled by the biased comments, discriminatory actions, and unfair peace brokering of the people and nations who have involved themselves either directly or indirectly in the conflict. It is a conflict that is made perpetual by closed minds, political agendas, and uneducated youth who seem determined to keep the conflict going. You will now be able to hear and see the stories, the interviews, and the actions of the men and women who have shaped the development of the conflict over the last 50+ years, and take what you hear and see and apply it objectively to your own beliefs. The 50 Years War removes you from the stagnant quagmire of narrow mindedness and allows you to progress your way through an issue that is often misinterpreted and made confusing by propaganda. Interpretation is a delicate matter. The 50 Years War treats it as such by not succumbing to biased views. Too bad this series doesn't say more about the deception that came out of Oslo.
Rating:
Summary: Informational and attempted objectivity
Review: Very well done exposition on the Political aspects of the
Arab Israeli conflict. The political leaders on the Arab and Israeli side and the peace making USA are given
insightfull portraits.
I guess no documentary can change a view on such a partisan
issue as the Arab Israeli conflict however this documentary
will add insight as to how the other side feels
Rating:
Summary: Excellent but narrow documentary
Review: Whatever your political views are regarding the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians (and I certainly have my own strong opinions), all serious students of the conflict in the Middle East should watch this PBS documentary. For those intimately familiar with the general course of the conflict, there are no groundbreaking revelations here. On the other hand, this five-hour DVD is chock full of archival footage and interviews with many of the political leaders, generals, guerrila/terrorists and diplomats that shaped the many decades of this frustrating struggle after World War II. Arafat and Sharon, enemies that they are, get to tell their fascinating sides of the story, as does Peres and an aging King Hussein, along with file interviews from Rabin and Sadat. This DVD is essentially the diplomatic history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Its story narrowly revolves around wars, conversations between diplomats and heads of state, etc. If you are looking for an account of the social history of the Israeli or the Palestinian people and their grievances, or want a detailed discussion of the history of settlement activity, terror bombings or life under the occupation, you will be disappointed. Such controversial and disputed topics are (perhaps wisely) beyond the scope of this documentary. A significant shortcoming in the video is the absence of any prelude episode that looks over the history of the area in the early twentieth-century under Ottoman rule or the Palestinian mandate. It begins rather abruptly just as the new state of Israel declares its independence in 1948. For an understanding of how the roots of the conflict were sewn, again you will have to look elsewhere. Finally, the video was produced several years ago, when Netanyahu was still Israeli PM. Eager viewers will have to await a future DVD to explore the terms of Barak and Sharon and the al-Aqsa intifada.
Rating: 
Summary: Arafat should shut up!!!
Review: Yasir Arafat is a baby. He blames everyone for the woes of the Palestinians. Did you see the 60 Minutes report on what a criminal he is? He is a thief!!! The worst thing Israel has ever done is not getting rid of him years ago.
Rating:
Summary: Must have - even if PBS did it
Review: []this documentary shows/tells the ABSOLUTE truth about the struggle for the tiny Jewish state, and how 22 arabs states tried to destroy it for the last 50 years. Running throughout the documentary is the brilliant subplot exposing arab truculence and intractability. You can't help but marvel when the Jews establish and maintain the state of Israel with little or no help from the Western world. And then continue to defend their homeland against barbaric hoards. The '48, '56, '67, and '73 wars are covered in great detail and explain how a little country with limited resources defeated supposedly superior arab forces. Was it the hand of G-d??? Watch the documentary and you decide.
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