Hatfields & McCoys

I enjoyed Hatfields & McCoys except for one thing: The audio in the first segment was horrible. So bad in fact that most of my friends turned it off after 30 minutes because they couldn't understand what the actors were saying. The plot, especially in the beginning was very important to the rest of the story, and there were so many characters involved that if you didn't know what they said, you were lost. The biggest issue was the mumbling of the actors, combined with what appeared to be lousy sound pick-up. Further along into part one, the audio seemed to clear up and the actors stopped mumbling for the most part. The second and third parts of the series were much better, audio wise.

Be aware that I am from southern WV, and while it may be hard for people outside this area to understand the dialect, it isn't for me. The early mumbling and audio was just bad.

Now, as far as the rest of the movie: I give it a 7, which is high for me. I'm glad to see the fact that these people weren't portrayed as stupid barefoot hillbillies. Check the history of Devil Anse on the Net and you'll find out that he was smart, wealthy, and the family turned out doctors and lawyers and governors. All in all, I like the show.

As a descendant of the Hatfield clan I found everything shown in this mini series mostly true. As a young teenager I did a report on it for school. The Johnse/Rosanna romance was true. As for Johnse being a romancer of women Rosanna even mentions that in part 1. The stolen pig is true along with the all of the killings that took place. The only parts I haven't confirmed in my time on earth is the part where Devil Anse takes Johnse fishing to find out if he told Nancy where the Hatfields were and Devil Anse being baptized. It's by far the best movie production by far about the feud. A lot of the little things like the 2 guys cutting the tree on the down hillside which isn't the way to cut a tree doesn't bother me. The major points of the feud were brought out n now a lot more know about history of the Hatfield & McCoys.

With its roots in the civil war in the Kentucky Virginia area, the Hatfields and McCoys feud is as epic as any in the literary world. That's why this series works so well. If Shakespeare is alive today, he would definitely write a play about them. This is iconic American history.

Two veteran big name actors anchor this series. Kevin Costner plays the leader of the Hatfields, 'Devil' Anse Hatfield. Bill Paxton plays the McCoys elder Randall. By placing such steady hands at the helm, the foundations is set solid. This History channel production is shocking because of its great production value. It sets a new bar for the standard that we must expect from now on.

I have to say I was skeptical to say the least when I first heard of this TV-show. A western with Kevin Costner sounded like something we have all already seen, so many times. I even considered not to watch it just because it sounded little lame to me. Well because there are so few shows about civil war the and time after that I decided to watch it anyway. And oh boy I am glad I did.

As I said there is so few good shows or movies about this era. In my opinion this is one of the best. A good dose of action and drama! There is romance and there is some good old western shooting and riding. Tho the thing I like best about this mini show is that it really feels authentic. Its like I am there watching the rebuild of the south after a long civil war. So all the history fans out there I am pretty sure you will like it a lot. I think all the actors do a great job! The characters are quite deep and interesting. Some of them also little comical. My favorite is Bill Paxton as Randall McCoy! The father and head of the family and a man full of so much agony and bitterness. I like Kevin Costners performance too!

The fact that I like this genre so much might affect my review but I still think this is a show well worth watching.

HATFIELDS & McCOYS is well-acted and well-filmed. According to some other reviewers, many of the historical fine points are inaccurate. Nevertheless, it relates the basic story very well, and, most importantly, gives an impartial dual-focus of the two clans and the complex nature of their snowballing feud.

The whole flavor of the film is that of a very good made-for-TV Western--or perhaps "Eastern" is the proper term. By necessity, of course, it's repetitively violent and full of shoot-'em-ups, hangings, and such, and is often rather depressing, with little humor or any other form of relief. Many may find this 290-minute TV miniseries a bit hard to watch in one or two nights. Still, it's a very captivating story whose beautiful scenery provides excellent contrast with its grim plot. Actually filmed in the Carpatian Mountains of Romania (!), but, aside from some stagey-looking buildings, it could have fooled me into thinking I was looking at authentic Appalachia.