Product Details

• Actors: Richard Dreyfuss As the, Voice of Teddy Roosevelt
• Format: Box set, Black & White, Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 4
• Studio: A&E Home Video
• VHS Release Date: March 25, 2003
• Run Time: 200 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000089QEI
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #155,225 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb, January 26, 2003

By 

A. H. Lynde "ahlynde" (Ewa Beach, HI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Teddy Roosevelt - An American Lion [VHS] (VHS Tape)

TR is like America's favorite uncle - sure he was President but wow was he cool. I saw this new, sweeping biography on cable and immediately pre-ordered it. Technically innovative and thoroughly accurate, it presents a moving portrait of a man you can't help but like. Stunning in the use of camera angles, dissolves, pans, edits and re-creations, the action is riveting. Rare film clips abound, perfectly edited. We see, for example, TR chopping down a tree, galloping on horseback, flashing his famous grin; troops landing and horses swimming onto the Cuban shore for the Spanish-American War; TR in "his" Panama clambering, clad in white suit, onto a giant bulldozer. And much more indeed.

The stills are also revealing: his father's honest face ("the best man I ever knew"); Alice, his lovely first wife (dead on the same "cursed" day as his mother: "the light has gone out of my life"); his comely childhood sweetheart and wife, Edith; TR in a dandy's cowboy outfit complete with Tiffany knife; his favorite son Quentin, later to die in the Great War, with head cocked lovingly on TR's shoulder. Richard Dreyfuss as TR proves the value of a good actor's voice and Edward Hermann's narration is richly textured. Presidents Bush II and Clinton, numerous TR descendants, and scholars galore are nicely picked and interwoven into the narrative. Though TR was the first American to win the Nobel Prize (settling the Russo-Japanese War) and the only president to earn the Medal of Honor (charging up San Juan into a hail of bullets), these awards seem almost incidental to his simple humanity. We are left wondering if there are men like him today, warts and all. But we are grateful for what one writer calls "this largest of American characters". (Also recommended: McCullough's classic "Mornings on Horseback"; Morris' Pulitzer-winning "The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt" and his meticulous second volume, "Theodore Rex").

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You can't help but love this guy, October 26, 2003

By 

bixodoido (Utah, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Teddy Roosevelt - An American Lion (DVD)

Theodore Roosevelt--lover of the limelight, ambitious to the extreme at times, pain in the rear for anyone who got in his way or opposed him--externally, this man doesn't seem like much of an American icon. Yet icon he is, for he stands for everything the ideal American should: Ambition, the drive to do what it takes to accomplish your dreams, the courage to stand up to the bully (in his case, big business) who no one else will stand up to. Call him what you will, Roosevelt was an incredible man.

This documentary is beautifully done. Richard Dreyfuss is perfect as the voice of Teddy--I couldn't imagine a better match. Clips of video, photographs, and splendid views of gorgeous scenery make this documentary pleasing to the eye, and superb editing and dubbing, coupled with relevant commentary and quotes from Teddy himself make it enjoyable to listen to as well. These features combine to make Teddy a REAL person, with insecurities and fears to match his ambitions and acheivements, and serve to endear him to almost any viewer.

I have studied almost nothing on Theodore Roosevelt, so I can't really comment on how accurate this is. It is possible (it wouldn't be the first time) that the History Channel is a little hazy on some of the facts, but for all I know this film is accurate. This is definitely one of the best new documentaries I have seen in a long time.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Interesting and Entertaining Look At Theodore Roosevelt, March 7, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Teddy Roosevelt - An American Lion (DVD)

"Teddy Roosevelt: An American Lion" is an interesting and entertaining look at Theodore Roosevelt. Disc One talks about Roosevelt's life from 1858 to 1901. Disc Two talks about Roosevelt's life from 1901 to 1919. "Teddy Roosevelt:An American Lion" talks about everything that happened in Roosevelt's life, and the most interesting parts are where you learn about Roosevelt's work in President Benjamin Harrison's cabinet and where you learn about Roosevelt's relationships with Woodrow Wilson and William Howard Taft. Former President Bill Clinton is in "Teddy Roosevelt:An American Lion" and discusses things that happened during Roosevelt's administration and the impact Roosevelt had on him. "Teddy Roosevelt:An American Lion" is an awesome DVD,and even if you're not a fan of Theodore Roosevelt, this is a must have for all TR/History buffs.