American Experience: The Abolitionists

"I will not retreat a single inch, and I will be heard." -William Lloyd Garrison
This production is filmed in a unique fashion. It's a mix of documentary presentation (with interviews with various historians, as well as narration), and a large amount of reenacting of events in the lives of pioneering abolitionists, such as Frederick Douglas, John Brown, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and William Lloyd Garrison. The end result of these efforts is riveting and highly informative. I was sucked in when I started watching this on PBS, and I couldn't turn away.

A stunning level of attention was applied to the set pieces that are used for the acting portions of the program. Everything from the majestic plantation homes of the south to the wardrobes is rendered with great care. The cities of period Boston, Baltimore, and New York are similarly recreated with great success, though they are shown in limited scope (which is understandable, given the presumably small budget). Even the horse and buggies (not to mention the dirt roads they traverse) seems to ring of genuine...

Great History piece for any age
I agree completely with the first reviewer here of this mini-series. I had just seen "Lincoln" in the theater and am now sopping up everything written or filmed on this period in our history.

I think the program was done tastefully, and honestly without being too graphic.

I missed Part 1 on PBS, so I am certainly purchasing the DVD to have it all complete.

Awesome documentary
I am a 6th grade social studies teacher and I find this documentary to be excellent. It looks real, it is a lot of live actors do a great job of dressing and acting the part. There's a lot of intense scenes, which is exactly what kids love. I have only seen parts and have heard that parts are very intense and may not be appropriate for 6th graders. The historians are well spoken and do not talk for too long in each clip. There's a good balance and spacing out of them versus the acting out part. The narration is clear. My 6th graders really remembered the information that came from this video.

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