Search - The American Revolution (History Channel) on DVD

Attempt is decent, but falls short of expectations.

Steven T. Horn | Texas, USA | 03/17/1999

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Being a bit of a history buff (disclaimer--I'm not a historian), I've looked for a long time to find good, authoritative information on the Revolutionary period--particularly information in video form. While I enjoy this set, it falls short of what I had expected. While in essence factual (sometimes even obscure facts are presented which keep it interesting), at other times, they miss the point and it is often explained from a purely British perspective. Oftentimes the underlying causes of the Revolution (or specific actions) are not thoroughly explained. It is worth owning, but if you have to pick one set on the subject, I would recommend "Liberty! - The American Revolution (1998)". In my opinion, that series shows the attitude of the combatants in a more comprehensive manner (including the noble and the base qualities of both sides), and is frankly more entertaining. Of course, I'm an American and quite patriotic, so I may be just a tad biased."

A&E at it's finest

M. Neels | St. Louis, Missouri | 07/05/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This DVD, while marketed as a History Channel production, actually dates back to the A&E days, before History Channel went on the air. It reminds me greatly of another A&E documentary I own, the four-tape set on the Titanic Disaster. I was very impressed by the Titanic Disaster special, and even more so by the American Revolution. As a History Major, I was able to watch this with an air of understanding, having already known quite a bit about the revolution, and still went away surprised. The documentary does a good job of showing the preserved battlefields of the Revolution (far less in numbers than those preserved from the Civil War) and does an excellent job of depicting the exciting times, the political struggles, and the men involved in what was the American Revolution. It even had William Daniels portraying the voice of John Adams (Daniels played Adams in the stage and screen adaptations of 1776: the Musical)! If you have even a vague interest in the American Revolution, or just feel patriotic, this is the documentary for you!"

AAA

K. Giorlando | Eastpointe, Michigan United States | 05/08/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This set get a triple A for Accuracy, Authenticity, and Action.
Many reviewers (including Amazon's) state that this is dry or boring. I disagree - in fact, I found it engulfing in the least, as did my 15 year old son, for whom I bought it.
Setting the stage for the reasons behind the Rev War and carrying on through all the major battles, using old paintings, drawings, as well as re-enactors to carry us through, this set pretty much covers the beginnings of our great nation. I don't know what else could have been done, aside from making an actual movie, to have this documentary be more exciting.
This box set of five DVD's also includes separate biographies of three of our Founding Fathers and the most famous traitor in our history.
Although a bit pricey, it is a very well-done high quality narration of the Revolutionary War, bringing my history book to life."

Not bad at all

Michael R. Nichols | Huntsville, AL USA | 07/09/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I read another review that said that this was a bit dry. I suppose that depends on how interested one is in the subject. From my perspective, this was not dry at all, but my interest level is very high.

Bill Kurtis is the host of this program and he does a good job of setting up what is to be seen and he ends each segment with a good summary and a teaser to see what is coming next.

Sure there were some re-enactment scenes that were repeated, but that didn't adversely impact the subject being talked about at the time. I thought the music was great and I'd like to get a CD just of that, if it exists.

There are many recognizable voices that speak for the characters. I tried to recognize the voice before I read the credits of whose voice depicted which character. I especially liked hearing William Daniels as John Adams, since he played John Adams in the movie version of "1776" and I love that production. This was a reprise, of sorts, for him.

Of the five DVD's that came with the package, only three of them actually depict the revolution. The other two are biographies of Washington, Franklin, Benedict Arnold and Paul Revere.

The bottom line is that this production is informative, educational and entertaining, albeit to different degrees for different people with differing interest levels. I'm sure that for a genuine historian, all of this is old hat, but for me, not a historian, just an interested American in our country's founding, I learned things that I didn't know; what happened at West Point, for example. The production helped me to put into perspective different events and how they related to other events and it cleared up some time lines for me.

Another good series from way before the war through the constitutional congress is "Liberty." "The American Revolution" does nicely on the war, but it quickly passes over what happened after the war, which is important in keeping a nascent country together.

I recommend this production for the interested, especially if you haven't seen other depictions of the revolution. Even if you have, you can pick up information that isn't in other depictions."