A Guerra do Vietnã

Well, I thought that was an amazing documentary. I think Ken Burns does an epic and moving job covering the events from a big picture political perspective. You really get a sense of the weight of history, and the scale of tragedy, particularly how decisions made by presidents and governments set in motion forces that led to catastrophic suffering. Millions of deaths and unhealed emotional wounds. I also thought the documentary was very good at the military level, describing battles and engagements that I had never heard of, in a reasonable detail. And the music and photography was epic. Seeing those pictures of old-time American life juxtaposed with the chaos of Vietnam was so moving. I also thought the reconciliation part at the end was really beautiful.

There were three things about the documentary that I did think were weaknesses.

1. There was such a focus on the protests, and starting so early on in the series, it kind of overwhelmed the narrative in some ways. I have read that the vast majority of veterans were proud of their service in Vietnam, and did not have this tortured sense of regret and shame that you see with those interviewed in the series. Some did but not most.

(for evidence see this article - https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/ken- burnss-vietnam-is-fair-to-the-troops-but-not-the-cause-1507324058)

2. I wonder about the conspiratorial angle of things. This documentary portrays the North Vietnamese as almost magically destined to win, as if it was inevitable, as if nothing the Americans could have done would have made any ultimate difference. I just wonder if part of the reason the Americans lost is because they weren't allowed to win. I mean, had the Americans occupied Hanoi and Haiphong Harbour, would not the North Vietnamese have been unable to prosecute the war? Surely if the Ho Chi Minh trail was permanently occupied in several places there wouldn't be the communist resupply into South Vietnam? But perhaps none of this would have been possible without China directly entering the conflict. Who knows.

3.Because the documentary is so long, and also attempts to cover the bigger historical events, I don't think it captures the day to day experience of the Vietnamese villagers that well. I mean, what made someone turn to the VietCong? What was daily life like? There is another, Vietnamese documentary "the face of the enemy" which I think does a better job of this.

Overall, a fascinating time spent watching this, and I recommend it to all with caveats.

This is overwhelming. This documentary had me riveted through all 10 episodes.

I recorded it, but could never proceed directly to the next episode because so much emotion was packed into each one. I had to give at least a day between each viewing. After viewing an episode I would shut the TV off. Watching anything after would have been anti-climatic compared to the intensity of what I had just absorbed.

Among many excellent passages from the documentary, this is one of my favourite commentaries: "It is very, very difficult to dispel ignorance if you retain arrogance".

We are provided with the full panoply of the Vietnam War, with many different viewpoints and opinions. From start to finish this is visually engrossing. Full congratulations go to the makers of this unforgettable documentary.

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.

This isn't an easy watch, but it's one that I would highly recommend nonetheless. I watch many documentaries, but I have only rarely seen such an insightful and comprehensive portrait of a chapter in history.

Over the course of 16.5 hours this docu series takes the viewer from the earliest roots of the conflict in Vietnam and the country's sad colonial history to its modern-day reality after the war. Along the way, it tells a mesmerizing, shocking, appalling, tragic - but most of all: incredibly immersive and informative - story from the perspective of the people who were affected by this man-made tragedy.

Unlike most other documentaries on the subject, we also get to hear first hand accounts from North- and South Vietnamese officers, ARVN and Vietcong fighters, civilians from both the South and the North, in addition to learning more about the American experience and about the profound effect the conflict had on US society.

What Ken Burns and Lynn Novick have accomplished here can hardly be overstated; this is more than "just" an in-depth look at the Vietnam War: this is nothing less than the portrait of an era. A masterful work. 10 stars out of 10

Favorite TV-Shows reviewed: imdb.com/list/ls075552387/

Favorite films: IMDb.com/list/mkjOKvqlSBs/

Lesser-Known Masterpieces: imdb.com/list/ls070242495/

Favorite Low-Budget and B-Movies: imdb.com/list/ls054808375/

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Heartbreaking. Deeply moving and beautiful film about a great tragedy. Many of the 18 hours made me want to cry.

I've watched every minute of every film Ken Burns ever made. I couldn't be a bigger fan. I know not everyone is, but I don't understand how. (Too emotional? Emotions are the greatest truths. And that's never more the case than in this film "The Vietnam War".) (Too liberal? No, objective, moderate.)

It's common for Burns's works to contain important tangential sub-themes. (A primary sub-theme of "Baseball" was race in America.)

"The Vietnam War" only had minor tangential sub-themes. It's story is so important that it didn't need major ones. Burns's "The Civil War" (about the only more-divisive war in American history) told the story of a nation growing up, coming together. "The Vietnam War" tells the story of America becoming it's modern, highly polarized, ungovernable/chaotic present. As such this film could not be more current, relevant, and important.