AllMovie

This epic-length documentary travels back to the 19th Century for a systematic examination of the deadliest conflict in U.S. history: the Civil War of 1861-65. The program begins with Abraham Lincoln's foreboding prophecy on June 16, 1858 - when the legendary president identified an unsettling contradiction at the heart of the nation: the fact that the young country promised full and unchecked human rights and yet also promulgated slavery - a slavery fully woven into the fabric of society. The film then springboards from the Lincoln speech into a sweeping look at the particular events of the war - including early anti-slavery protests, the battle of Appomattox, and much more; more broadly, the documentary explores the forces that drove violent schisms between Americans for the duration of the tumult.