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As the granddaughter of a coal miner who was also a union organizer, and having been born and brought up in Appalachia, I was highly interested in the theme of this film. What a huge disappointment. Holly Hunter grunts and twangs like a deranged Daisy Mae, almost unintelligibly at times. Her accent is not at all mountain, but cartoonish. One could expect much more from an Academy Award winner.

Also, it might come as a huge shock to some, but people in Kentucky and West Virginia have had electricity, running water, and indoor facilities for at least 50 years now. Not only that, but--hold onto your seat, now--most women there don't go around dressed like a Dorothea Lange photograph (and didn't in 1973, either!); nor do the children all go barefoot; nor does everyone live in rusted-out shacks.

For a much more realistic picture of mine families, try "October Sky". The story is set earlier, in the 50's; but you can see that even then, people had more semblance of civilization that the dismal one-step-up-from-HeeHaw that "Harlan County War" portrays.

A strange irony that this film, supposedly sympathetic to the plight of families suffering because of corporate greed, was shot in British Columbia during the film crew strike. Shame on them. Shame on me, too, for wasting money and irreplaceable time on this letdown.

I'm trying to think of something, anything, I don't like about this film--nope, I can't. After five viewings since I bought the DVD on a hunch earlier this week, I'm hooked. I now have the triad of marvelous B&W Christmas favorites. This one is every bit as good as "Miracle on 34th St." and "It's a Wonderful Life".

I keep finding nuances and layers of meaning every time I watch. The film is replete with subtle symbolism that doesn't announce itself with bells and whistles, but quietly sinks into the consciousness and warms like the professor's sherry.

I won't bother to give a whole plot rehash, as many people here have already done so and I don't need to be so repetitive. Just promise yourself two things: First, that you won't settle for the pallid modern Whitney Houston remake; and second, you'll unwrap this wonderful film and rediscover what Christmas, love, and magic were once upon a time.

"Bluegrass Journey" highlights some fantastic moments in American acoustic music, and should appeal to aficionados of both traditional bluegrass (Del McCoury Band, Bob Paisley and Southern Grass) and newgrass (Nickel Creek, The Texas Trio) with a bone thrown to Celtic music as well (Tim O'Brien and The Crossing). The camera work is at times stunning, putting us not just right on stage at the Grey Fox Festival, but intimately close to instruments played expertly and with great affection. The offerings by Dobro virtuoso Jerry Douglas are by themselves worth the price of the DVD.

The directors have inexplicably included a grating scene of a New Age wedding which not only adds absolutely nothing to the film, but detracts from it. One can only speculate as to why they deemed this worthy of our attention, but omitted any portrayal of the hymns and Sunday morning Gospel sings which are integral to the genre, and which grace almost every bluegrass festival I've ever heard of.

The unfortunate wedding scene notwithstanding, "Bluegrass Journey" is a worthwhile tribute to a truly American art form.