Merolliv I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

ChanFamous I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

Griff Lees Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

Ava-Grace Willis Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

richard-1787 I spent the last week reading and then watching this remarkable series, i.e., reading a chapter in Geoffrey C. Ward's 400+ page book and then watching the corresponding episode of the documentary film. While the script of the films, also by Ward, reproduces much of what is in the book, often verbatim though not necessarily in the same order, there is also much that had to be left out to limit this massive undertaking to seven approximately 2-hour film episodes. Reading the book is already a very moving and informative experience. It is very well and powerfully written. But watching the seven installments of the movie is yet more powerful, indeed often overwhelming. (I could not handle more than one episode a day.) It is one thing to read the recollections of the witnesses, almost all of whom are master story tellers. It is that much more powerful to hear their voices and see their faces as they recount them. Much interesting detail is lost in the narrative in going from the book to the movie, so the movie is less informative than the book. But in terms of conveying the emotional impact the war had on both those who fought in it and those who lived through it here in the States, which in the end is one of Burns' goals, the movie is far more successful than the already very successful book.Some previous reviewers get lost in irrelevant sidetracks. Burns makes it very clear from the start that he cannot tell the whole story of the War, so he is limiting himself to how it affected people in four mid- to small-sized American towns. (He cheats a little on this with witnesses like Glenn Frazier, who wasn't from Mobile, and Sascha Werzheimer, who was from Sacramento but spent the War in the Philippines, but I'm not going to fault him on that.) Complaining that this series does not cover the war in Yougoslavia or other places is therefore irrelevant; no one could cover all of the war in 15 hours of documentary, and Burns tells us from the very beginning what limits he is imposing on his presentation. If you want something else, this is not the place to look for it.Others complained about the music. I truly cannot understand why. Burns' team makes masterful use of songs popular during the War, and of a deeply moving score by Winton Marsalis that makes already powerful visual and vocal footage that much more devastating. I wouldn't listen to the sound track by itself, but putting it beneath the rest of what is going on makes it that much more devastating.It is clear that Burns and Ward want to make several points, none of which I see as particularly left- or right-wing. They show that some of the American generals in the war had overbearing egos (MacArthur in particular) and some were simply incompetent. They show that war brings out the worst in some human beings, whatever the nationality, reducing them to something subhuman, such as the American GI who extracts teeth from an enemy corpse to get the gold fillings or the Japanese soldiers who emasculate dead GIs. (We actually see brief film footage of what appears to be GIs robbing Japanese soldiers' corpses of their possessions.) But we also hear of incredible courage and stamina, often told by men whose courage and endurance is equaled only by their humility. As several of the veterans say, you cannot understand what it was like to live through the worst of the war unless you were there. This movie doesn't challenge that assertion. It does, however, do a remarkable job of giving us some idea not just of the facts of the matter, but of what the war did emotionally to those who lived through it, on the fields of battle and here at home. On the last page of the book's text, one of the witnesses, Quentin Aanenson, says that "the dynamics of war are so absolutely intense, the drama of war is so absolutely emotionally spellbinding, that it's hard for you to go on with a normal life without feeling something is missing." It is that absolute intensity that this movie series does an often overwhelmingly good job of conveying.

Leofwine_draca THE WAR is another exemplary documentary miniseries from filmmaker Ken Burns. Despite the lengthy running time (seven two hour episodes), this is never less than completely moving, engaging, and thoroughly insightful. I've already seen plenty of WW2 documentaries but it turns out that Burns still had plenty of say about the topic and plenty to teach. I like the way that the focus of the film is on four American towns, following the fortunes of various soldiers and pilots who enlisted for a hellish journey. The interviews are spellbinding, the unseen footage quite incredible, and Keith David's narration (along with that of uncredited Hollywood stars) the icing on the cake.

zkonedog Too many times, historical documentaries of World War II (or any war for that matter) focus way too much on the technical aspects of the event, such as where battles took place, what the military strategies were, and how many were killed. Instead of taking this tact, master historian/filmmaker Ken Burns chooses to focus on the stories of a few individuals (and their families/friends) who participated in the war.Now, don't get me wrong...Burns also does enough historical recapping to satisfy a viewer who has no idea what happened (trust me, these people do exist!). However, Burns masterfully blends that information with the touching stories of individuals who did the "dirty work" of the war.As a result, this documentary works on both the micro and macro levels of filmmaking. On one hand, it chronicles the United States' participation in the war...it is especially interesting to see the blatant racism against blacks and Japanese citizens, as well as the helpful attitude U.S. citizens had towards the war effort (very much unlike contemporary wars). On the other hand, it probes the brittle human psyche that is created in the aftermath of war, as humans who are raised to never take a life must adopt an entirely new frame of mind while in combat.Overall, this film was the best World War II documentary I have ever seen. By combining the "big picture" of the war effort (complete with simple graphics and illustrations) with the heartwarming (or heartbreaking) individual stories of its participants (I was close to tears on more than a few occasions), Ken Burns created a realistic tapestry of the effects the war had on every citizen. It is so genuine that I almost felt guilty sending it to my grandfather, a WW2 veteran, as I was afraid it would drudge up too many painful memories for him.

Rick Stevenson I've watched this mini-series at least a half dozen times at this point. Each time, I learn new things. Each time, I'm completely enthralled. There is so much insight, so many things that I did not know about World War II that it is sometimes difficult to absorb everything that's related. And this is, mind you, just from the point of view of the United States and its soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines.In particular, the first person stories told by those who were there, who fought or were prisoners during the war, are very engrossing. Their stories are poignant, and you genuinely feel their losses and their grief. Even after so many viewings, I frequently find myself tearing up at certain points. This is one of the many things that speaks to the enduring quality of the documentary. Keith David's narration is spot on, providing an anchor that is sometimes necessary considering the material being discussed.In short: I cannot recommend this more. Watch it.