User Reviews

I thoroughly enjoyed my watching of The American Revolution. It fleshed out and humanized that important time compared to my simple and romanticized version I was taught as a kid growing up in the U.S. It opened my eyes to the fact that it was more a civil war than one between the British and American. It fleshed out the deeply complex people, capable of both good and evil, behind my nation's founding. It was fascinating to learn of the huge impact, mostly forgotten and whitewashed, that black and native people had in the conflict. Its an important documentary to understand that no war or revolution is simply good vs. evil. And that very flawed men can still fight for something great and create something better than themselves.

This show is well made with historians giving examples from actual first hand sources. I would recommend it. History is there whether or not you like it. If you would prefer it the way it was told you when you where five years old in a cartoon, you might wanna stay with that cartoon instead. You might dislike what you are told or want to erase it but the wiser thing would be to learn from our shared past instead and see it as it was; complex, full of persons acting for different reasons trying to survive in a grim world.

Ken Burns once again delivers a superb historical documentary, unafraid to show that even the most admired figures had their flaws. He balances the darker and lighter sides of the story with his usual clarity. And despite losing government funding, PBS still proves it can produce outstanding public service work.”

Hes brought us a mostly exquisite and meticulous retelling of a mostly forgotten chapter of our shared history. But sadly, as is almost always the case, its laden and hobbled by a patronizing and beleaguered focus on the very real and disconcerting history of racial persecution and slavery. He simply cannot help himself. And so as is usually the case its tough to tell if the guy has even a shred of affection or respect for the country or its people. The result is a messy and uneven string of random facts and battle lines. Most of the people he interviews look as if theyd been created by AI. We all know the evils that have transpired in our history. Its nothing unique to america before or after our period of history. I swear if he made a doc about lets say spaceflight, itd be mostly commentary on evil whites and how bad slavery is. Its weird and counterproductive. All the worse considering how fascinating and important the revolution was.

Total historical revisionism mixed with no fewer than 5 flat out lies or heavily anti-American points of view. Constant half truths and an inability to portray the founding fathers of America in a good or truthful light. Totally disappointing after watching the civil war documentary.