The Civil War

For someone who lives outside the United States of America and has an interest in it's history 'The Civil War' for me delivers everything that I'm unable to get here in the UK.

History books don't even come close in highlighting the lives and stories of the those involved in this watershed of America history, it's effects not only felt in North America but eventually the world.

Outstanding.

Contrary to the only other comment so far, I found this inspiring and elevating. I understood the civil war in a way nothing else in 17 years of formal education did. Burns was trying to tell what is perhaps the most compelling story since this country was founded. He had no footage, and was not interested in dramatizing the battles (which is notoriously difficult to to without boosting one side). Instead, he found a way to take the still images and remnants of the war and the stories of individuals and make them more real than any movie could do. Eleven hours of reenactments would have been interminable - and silly - as vaunted as the reenactors are, they get away with it because they are romanticized - can you imagine reenacting Ardennes or Khe Sanh? In a world where TV viewership is measured in 5-minute chunks if you're lucky, Burns kept viewers' attention for 11+ hours - and with no commercials - quite a feat.

This series is excellent, probably the best ever. Ken Burns brilliantly captures all of the elements of one of America's greatest disasters. Shelby Foote and all of the other authors and historians that took part in this series were excellent. Foote especially was great for bringing some really good incite on the war. Also Sam Waterston gives an excellent performance as the voice of Abraham Lincoln. Morgan Freeman also does an excellent job as Frederick Douglass. Not to leave anyone out, all the voice-overs were superb. Its a great way to spend 9 1/2 hours, if you have them. But, if you don't have time to watch all, I highly recommended seeing "The Cause" (part 1) and "The Better Angels Of Our Nature" (Final part). They both are truly masterpieces on their own.

Not only is "The Civil War" Ken Burns' best documentary, it is one of the best out there, also. It easily mixes emotions with facts, while keeping an eye on narration.

It doesn't go for cheap "recreation" moments; in other words, we don't see a redo of the tale told with about five soldiers who look like they're dressed for Halloween; we instead see real pictures while listening to vivid narrations by such actors as Jason Robards, Laurence Fishburne, Morgan Freeman, Jeremy Irons, M. Emmet Walsh, Pamela Reed, and more.

If you haven't seen this four hour epic yet, then go find it at a video store right now.

This is by far the best documentary I've ever seen. History is my favorite subject to study and I have seen a lot of documentaries and "The Civil War" by Ken Burns is by far my favorite.

The Civil War is my favorite subject in history to study and Ken Burns does and excellent job at spacing out the sequence of the war in this set, basically two videos per year of the war. Many people stereotypically think of documentaries as dull and boring, but Ken Burns definately does not let "The Civil War" fall into that stereotype. Thats why this documentary is not only good for learning but the soundtrack, the scenery and everything else put into it makes you really appreciate and get a feel for the Civil War era. As you watch through the videos from Fort Sumter through Antietam and Gettysburg and up to Appomattox, you can really get the fealing of how the actual Yankee and Rebel soldiers felt during these times. burns does not only focus on the battles which would stand out as the most interesting part of a war, but he gets into the personal lives of the soldiers, the soldiers' families, abolitionists and slaves.

David McCullough has a wonderful voice as the narrator and it was also nice to hear some familiar voices for some of the characters such as Jason Robards, Morgan Freeman, and Sam Waterston. The interviews by Edwin Bears, Shelby Foote and other historians were always nice to hear among the documentary.

Overall a very well done documentary on the Civil War. If you are interested in American history in general this and "The West" also by Ken Burns are an excellent choice to see.