‘The American Revolution’ Review: Filmmaker and Historian Ken Burns Delivers Epic Docuseries Analyzing the Formation of the United States

The name Ken Burns is synonymous with documentaries. The filmmaker has crafted some of the most in-depth and entertaining historical series ever made.

I’ve watched his magnum opus, The Civil War, and have earmarked several other productions to check out at some point.

Just in time for the United States’ 250-year birthday, Ken Burns has dropped his latest effort, “The American Revolution”. Divided into six episodes, each at the two-hour length, “Revolution” was directed by Burns, Sarah Botstein, and David Schmidt, and premiered on PBS last November.

May, 1754

A group of ragtag rebels are fed up with the monarchy rule of Great Brittain. No spoiler alerts needed, if you are reading this or planning to watch, you know the gist of what’s about to happen.

But Ken Burns does not settle for the gist.

We take a deep dive into every facet of the time before, during, and after the American Revolution. This is unique in that most depictions focus solely on the war itself. It’s fascinating and important to contextualize events two decades before the first musket was fired. Likewise, the period in the immediate aftermath could be a series on its own.

“If this be treason, make the most of it!” – Patrick Henry

Obviously, there are no photos or videos of the events at play. A gaggle of historians speak to the occurrences we are watching, with relevant live action and era-specific artistic renderings spliced throughout. My boy Peter Coyote serves as narrator. As I watched, I couldn’t help but wish there was actual footage of this stuff, but this next best thing.

“The American Revolution” took six months to make and was filmed at over 150 locations including a solar eclipse in the Adirondacks and winter shoots in Providence, Rhode Island. Ancient maps provide context for how the early colonies would have looked.

Ken Burns

Ken Burns does what he does best in that he tells the full story, including the good, the bad, and the ugly.

The darker elements of slavery and treatment of Native Americans isn’t whitewashed. The battles are bloodier than one may expect, and the grisly nature of war isn’t shied away from.

It’s a documentary that will provide more knowledge than anything ever taught in school. What’s interesting is seeing how the framework of conflict is still relevant today.

Burns himself is a national treasure. He has been nominated for two Academy Awards, and has won seventeen Emmy’s, two Grammy’s, three Peabody’s – so we can say he is good. What we can also say is that his ability to catalogue history in an artistic and entertaining way is invaluable.

Burns resides in the small town of Walpole, New Hampshire, where he is from, and seems like a genuinely cool guy.

Happy Semiquincentennial!

As the US readies for its 250^th year birthday, “The American Revolution” provides education, knowledge, and entertainment for film and history buffs alike.

I will be hitting up more Ken Burns films in the future.