The Civil War (TV mini-series 1990): This highly acclaimed mini series traces the course of the U.S. Civil War from the abolitionist movement through all the major battles to the death of President Lincoln and the beginnings of Reconstruction. The story is mostly told in the words of the participants themselves, through their diaries, letters, and Visuals are usually still photographs and illustrations of the time, and the soundtrack is likewise made up of war-era tunes played on period instruments. (9.5)
Director: Ken Burns
Narrator: David McCullough
Stars: Sam Waterston, Jason Robards, Morgan Freeman, Garrison Keillor, Arthur Miller
This is an epic documentary series that's taken longer to make--five years--than the actual civil war itself. 9 episodes; lots of famous actors to give voices to key figures. It uses lots of period photographs (such as they were during 1861-1865 time; made on glass plates, fuzzy and blurry) intermixed with beautiful scenery shots from today. Even though I've been a US citizen for 20+ years, I still view the US history, specially the civil war time as an outsider looking at someone else's family squabble. I'd read a couple of Lincoln biographies, some material on the civil war, yet I learned a lot from this series. The numbers alone are staggering. The historian Shelby Foote says in the 9th episode: "Before the war it was said as 'United states are' ... after the war it was always 'United States is' ... sums up what the war accomplished. It made us an 'is'." From this point on, I'd always think of Robert E. Lee whenever someone asserts states rights ... just imagine what would have happened had Lee agreed to command the Union army instead of going with his state, Virginia. It took me 9 nights to watch all the episodes, but I think I will watch it again. I highly recommend this documentary series. My Rating: 9.0
