Customer Reviews

Liberty! The American Revolution

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This collection was well researched and well made. The actors portraying the major players of the Revolution were very believable. The set is what it is; a great to start scratching your Revolutionary itch. However, it is glaringly lacking in some areas. For one, the complete brushing over of the entire Philadelphia Campaign. The only battle that even received mention was Brandywine. The rest of the action around Philadelphia went unmentioned, including the infamous winter at Valley Forge. The war in the South could have been more thoroughly addressed, also. Much like the History Channels "American Revolution" these video collections are entertaining and provide some fillers and portraits of human interest but the true Revolutionary enthusiast will come away disappointed. Keep your noses in the books for indepth treatment of this time period.

Having spent a good deal of time watching the various DVDs telling the story of the American Revolution, I was definitely most excited by this one. Not everything gets in there, but that's also what helps it to move right along in an intriguing, coherent way that keeps at a high level my interest, excitement and appreciation of what the founders accomplished. I want this DVD set to have in order to loan it far and wide, as I believe there is no longer sufficient awareness of the greatness of what happened in "our revolution."
It's true that "The History Channel Presents the Revolution" is more complete; but it also gets cumbersome--even confusing--in places, AND it completely leaves out the (to me) highly significant role that Thomas Paine played in moving the common man toward supporting the revolution. (I understand how some of his later writings irked the "fundamental religionists"--his religious ideas being much closer to those of Thomas Jefferson than those of the typical colonialist; but I also wonder if it's not current-day fundamentalist views that have kept Paine out of such historical portrayals and out of the praise due him as one of our crucial Founding Fathers.)
The DVD "Founding Fathers" is a good supplement; but it's "Liberty" that really captures my enthusiasm. Let me urge you to buy it to watch and loan on every 4th of July -- as an act of Patriotism !!

...if you're at all interested in the fascinating Revolutionary war period. After seeing the series on PBS several years ago, I bought the VHS version, but now I wish I'd waited for DVD. It's an awesome documentary of the Revolutionary war, including politics and battles, with enough details of personalities and strategies to satisfy most. I particularly liked the period music soundtrack.

I own this set, "The Revolution" by the History Channel, and the "American Revolution" series that A&E ran in the 1990s narrated by Bill Kurtis. This is, far and away, the best of the bunch.

"Liberty" does the best job of outlining the American Revolution in its full scope, giving much focus to the situation in the colonies before the first shots were fired. They pay a lot of attention to the Stamp Act, Boston Tea Party, and the Coercive / Intolerable Acts. By the time the actual war begins, you have a full understanding as to why it did.

They also do a very important service in focusing on what happened after the war. The revolution could very much have gone down in flames if it weren't for the framers of our Constitution. It was a very uncertain time, and "Liberty" does a fine job in showing us how we were able to maintain our republic.

The actors and actresses are fully believable, the background music is very moving, and the illustrations used are first rate.

I should add that if you are interested primarily in the military aspects of the American Revolution (i.e. the war itself), then you may be disappointed with this version and should probably consider one of the other two. This is the best overall view of the conflict - the revolution that was "in the hearts and minds of the people," as John Adams put it - and as a result some elements of the war are not included.

I have to say that this piece is the most comprehensive film about the American Revolution I have ever seen. Important characters and their influence are well depicted. The best part may be the words in this film since they are quoted really from the speaking and diary in that time.

Although the Americans didn't win many battles during the time, the battles they won seem to be decisive. Winning the battle at Saratoga brings the French support. Winning the siege of Yorktown with the French Navy triumphs the revolution, unofficially. Winning the independence, however, doesn't mean forming a nation. There is debate about this for being afraid of taxation. After many efforts persuading people from their fear to form a powerful government, a nation is finally born.

The content from winning the war to form the union seems rush. I am glad they bring out my interest in this but then they leave me more hunger. Another weakness is the French and Indian War. This war has certain importance for the later revolution. It would be good if this film can talk more about its impact.

It may be too much for high school students or someone merely needing an introduction to digest this film. Except for this, you should find this film informative, all-inclusive and delightful to watch.

Liberty could be the best documentary PBS has ever produced. It engages students in the events leading up to and including the American Revolution in a manner that provokes thoughtful contemplation of the people, events, motives and outcomes of this critical time period in American history. The supporting Web site for teachers is well developed and provides excellent resources for teaching and further research and reading. I heartily recommend this DVD to anyone interested in either teaching or learning about the Revolutionary War.

I absolutely love this series. Brought up in Newport, Rhode Island, I learned US History from grammar school through college, but I never learned that Newport had many Tories until I was inspired by this program on pbs to delve deeper into the Revolutionary War. Newport's Tories actually welcomed the British Occupation! I bought the dvd and have watched it many times. It is like a good novel, but it is true. A super plus is the music, especially James Taylor. I own the cd and the book too.

To me, every American family should have a copy of this video to show on Veteran's Day or July 4th, and then take a trip to some of the battle sites. Concord and Lexington are among the most impressive. The Park Service has been restoring Battle Road to what it was when Paul Revere did his famous ride. Every year Lexington hosts a pre-dawn re-enactment of the "shot heard around the world" which attracts TOURISTS from around the world. Another great re-enactment is the crossing of the Delaware in New Jersey. This video will inspire you to want to visit these sites and to learn more about the history of our wonderful (if not perfect) country.

A wonderful mix of historic details and personal insights into the birth of our nation. The story is told, in part, by dramtic readings of actual letters, documents and diary entries and the actors, without exception, are excellent. Many, such as Phillip Seymour Hoffman, have gone on to bigger, though not better, things. Highly rcomended!

I teach AP American History in high school and I've been looking for something useful and entertaining for the classroom on the American Revolution. This is it! It's every bit as good as Ken Burns' Civil War series and the students enjoy it as much as any documentary. I bought the series in search of something on the causes of the Revolution (Stamp Act, Intolerables, etc.), which has been tougher than I expected. This DVD has one entire episode devoted to that era. As a bonus, I discovered that it also has an entire episode on the period from 1783 up through the Constitutional Convention, including covereage/or at least mention of Shay's Rebellion, the Articles of Confederation and social & economic developments in the country. Yes, most of the 6 part DVD set is devoted to the military aspects of the war, but these first and last episodes are worth the price of the whole set in my estimation. And besides those episodes, just pick your favorite periods of the actual war to show in class---there's more to pick from than you can possibly use. This beats the History Channel's American Revolution in quality by a far margin. I agree with those who say this is the best PBS product I've ever seen. And this is good for probably grades 8-12.

When this first came out on PBS I started watching it and never got into the flow of it. I hated the fact that they used actors to play real people rather than using the tried and true (and fantastic) Ken Burns style. Ironically, I absolutely loved the book Liberty ! : The American Revolution By Thomas Fleming by - it is, hands down, the best single-volume comprehensive history of the American Revolution that I have found.

So, I was pretty much bashing the series because it was not something else. So, here I am years later and I decided to give it a second try. I am glad that I did.

Liberty! is much better than I remembered. It is not as good as the book but it the best documentary on the American Revolution I have seen. It is as thorough as one can be in the limited time that this format will allow.

As for the actor thing - this time around I really liked it. The actors are really good and the story is paced very well. The build up to the revolution is logical and shows how the logic of both the British and the American positions and how those positions led to the Revolution.

Liberty! does a good job of going back and forth from the political to the military action in the actual war. The last episode in the series covers the Articles of Confederation and the writing of the Constitution a little too quickly but it makes a good point about how the original argument about the Constitution are still the same argument we are having today - how much power should our national government have?