The American Revolution: A Film by Ken Burns, Sara Botstein & David Schmidt.

The article reviews *The American Revolution*, a 2025 documentary series directed by Ken Burns, Sara Botstein, and David Schmidt, which explores the founding of the United States during its 250th anniversary. The series employs a multivocal approach featuring historians, narrators, and celebrity voi...

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Publicado en:Public Historian Vol. 48; no. 2; pp. 169 - 172
Autor principal: Schroeder, Robyn
Formato: Film/TV Criticism and Review
Publicado: University of California Press May2026
Materias:
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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        atl: The American Revolution: A Film by Ken Burns, Sara Botstein & David Schmidt.
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        au: Schroeder, Robyn
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        American Revolutionary War, 1775-1783
        Documentary films
        Founding Fathers of the United States
        Documentary filmmakers
        Historical analysis
        Social dynamics
        Nationalists
        Burns, Ken, 1953-
        United States
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        subj:
          United States
          American Revolutionary War, 1775-1783
          Documentary films
          Founding Fathers of the United States
          Documentary filmmakers
          Historical analysis
          Social dynamics
          Nationalists
          Burns, Ken, 1953-
      ab: The article reviews *The American Revolution*, a 2025 documentary series directed by Ken Burns, Sara Botstein, and David Schmidt, which explores the founding of the United States during its 250th anniversary. The series employs a multivocal approach featuring historians, narrators, and celebrity voice actors to highlight the era’s social complexities, including Indigenous and enslaved peoples’ roles, though it sometimes reverts to nationalist narratives that obscure regional and class differences. While the documentary improves upon earlier works by incorporating recent scholarship and diverse perspectives, it focuses primarily on the Revolutionary War over broader political and cultural revolutions, with limited coverage of events like the French and Indian War and gradual emancipation. The film concludes by linking the Revolution’s promises to ongoing social progress but tends to downplay the era’s legacies of land conquest and enslavement.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
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    language: English
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