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Civil War Combat: America's Bloodiest Battles

Civil War Combat: America's Bloodiest Battles

List Price: $44.95
Your Price: $40.46
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: A unique approach to Civil War documentary
Review: This series of four documentaries are different from most Civil War films in that they highlight specific points of four battles, whereas most documentaries are content simply to provide an overview of the battle itself. Because of this, each episode contains many little-known facts about the battles of Antietam, Cold Harbor, Shiloh, and Gettysburg. And, at an hour long (more or less), they are not excessively long.

The highlights from each of the battles are interesting, but probably only so for someone interested in the war. Watching an hour-long reenactment of the wheat field at Gettysburg is probably meaningless without at least some appreciation of what was happening at the other parts of the battle. Anyone who studies the Civil War closely will appreciate these little-known facts, but casual viewers may find it a bit much.

In addition to its narrow scope, these four documentaries are riddled with errors that should have been obvious to the folks at the History Channel. For example, saying General Grant was in charge of the Union Army at Gettysburg is just plain false, as any amateur historian should know. These erroes detract much from the reliability of the accounts.

Despite these two setbacks, this is a noteworthy documentary, worth your time at least to check it out.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Very well done
Review: Was surprised by the realistic violence of this series. That really make them stand out from other documentaries that use re-enactors.

Cold Harbor and the Wheatfield are the best segments. The maps were very good in helping you keep track of the battle action. Also, these two segments had the best human interest stories.

The Antietam segment was ok; looked like it was 20 men fighting in a city park. The fighting just did not have the impact of the Cold Harbor or Wheatfield segments.

Shiloh segment was really lacking in maps. I have toured the battlefield, and still had trouble following what was going on. For someone with no knowledge of the battle, this segment will be confusing. Also, the main human interest story kind of overpowers the battle story.

Good addition to your Civil War media library.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the best Civil War documentaries
Review: You like the civil war? You like watching a civil war documentary and being able NOT to fall asleep? Do yourself a favor and buy this.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the best Civil War documentaries
Review: You like the civil war? You like watching a civil war documentary and being able NOT to fall asleep? Do yourself a favor and buy this.


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