I love documentaries, I'm incredibly interested in wars and I'm biased towards Ken Burns' Docs. So I may be skewed in that regard when I say that The Vietnam War was the most moving thing I have seen on my television set in years, maybe decades. It is an investment. 10 episodes, most of them 2 hours long, at times admittedly redundant, but packed with incredible insight, astounding footage, and all kinds of juicy political revelations. I have heard some criticisms that this documentary leans favorably towards Communism and does not celebrate American soldiers enough. I would beg of anybody to watch this to put aside their political views when watching this beautiful documentary. Many times during my viewings, I thought I had a firm stance on something that occurred during the war and then somebody would come on and share their view on the subject. Immediately, my view was shaken, if not changed altogether. I can't say that the film looks favorably or unfavorably on any particular political party or 'side' if you will. All I can tell you is that everybody, from VietCong farmer, anti-war protesters, prisoners of wars to ambassadors all have plenty of screen time to share their perspective. And in a nutshell, that's what blew me away about this documentary. The different perspectives that arose. I am only convinced of one thing after seeing this documentary, there simply is no answers on this war. And certainly no obvious truths. War is complex, war is hell, war wounds and war heals. You can go into this thing looking to vilify Nixon, slander the VietCong, lambaste antiwar protesters, but I assure you you will walk away having learnt something and fostered a new outlook. Incredibly highly recommended but this is not popcorn and beer viewing. Serious, graphic and powerful stuff. Amazing.
Review of The Vietnam War
