Wuchak Released in 1982 and directed by Andrew V. McLaglen, "The Blue and the Gray" covers the Civil War era from 1859-1865 focusing on two related families: The Geysers, farmers from Charlottesville, Virginia, and the Hales from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, who own a newspaper. John Geyser (John Hammond) leaves Virginia to get a job as a sketch artist at the Hale's newspaper in Gettysburg. When war breaks out after the Southern states secede from the Union, John covers the war for Harper's Weekly.MAIN CAST includes Stacy Keach as a Pinkerton-turned-Union-officer who romances John's cousin (Julia Duffy); Gregory Peck as Lincoln; Kathleen Beller as an aristocrat-turned-nurse; Dan Shor & Michael Horton as John's brother; Rip Torn as General Grant; and Lloyd Bridges & Colleen Dewhurst as Mr. and Mrs. Geyser. These are just the principle characters; there are scores of others (Robert Vaughn, Geraldine Page, Warren Oates, Robert Symonds, etc.).I prefer "The Blue and the Gray" to the similar "North and South" (Books I & II, 1985-86) because it's more streamlined and less soap opera-y. Director McLaglen had decades of experience by this this time with both TV shows and films, including a few notable Westerns, like "Bandolero!" (1968) and "Chisum" (1970); in fact, his "Shenandoah" (1965) was a Civil War 'Western.' The first half is great, but the second half flounders a bit and includes some cheesy plot gimmicks, like the mad slasher Confederate officer and John mistaking his babe (the nurse) supposedly making out with the Union stud (Keach). The 'floundering' includes some abrupt shifts, like from the Battle of Vicksburg (July, 1863) to the Battle of the Wilderness (May, 1864), which can likely be explained by cuts from the original mini-series. If you watch the longer version you probably won't encounter this problem. What I like best about this "miniseries" (i.e. long movie) is that, despite some elements of TV-production cheese (e.g. the two Union & Confederate deserters' almost goofy meeting in the woods), the film takes you back in time to the Civil War era and provides a quality picture of what it was like.Some of the notable events covered include: The Battle of Bull Run, Army camp life, dysentery in the camps, cowards in battle and the branding thereof, balloon reconnaissance, fraternizing with the enemy after hours, brother vs. brother, the Gettysburg Address, the siege of Vicksburg and the desperation thereof (e.g. the Caves), prisoner-of-war camps (Elmira), Lee's surrender and Lincoln's death. Yes, some key events are off-screen (e.g. the Battle of Gettysburg and Lincoln getting shot), but that's the nature of the beast with a TV-budget and an overview-styled story. Lastly, Keach shines as one of the main protagonists, easily one of his best rolls, and Duffy is a delight.The film runs 296 minutes (4 minutes shy of 5 hours), with the original 3-part miniseries running 381 minutes. It was shot entirely in Arkansas (Fort Smith, Eureka Springs, Fayetteville, Van Buren & Prairie Grove Battlefield State Park). The script was written by John Leekley & Ian McLellan Hunter based on Bruce Catton's material.GRADE: B

virek213 America's existence, as a beacon for freedom and democracy around the world, has often seemed to be (and frequently is, in reality) a work in progress. Nowhere is that better illustrated in the event that is oftentimes known as the War Between The States (North and South), but generally known as the Civil War. A bitter war fought largely over the question of whether it was right to keep anyone, especially those of African descent, as slaves, the war almost eviscerated the country during four long bloody year, from 1861 to 1865. It was only when the 13th Amendment and the Emancipation Proclamation became law that the war ended, as too did slavery, and the long march toward full civil rights had really begun. This was the subject for the epic 3-part miniseries THE BLUE AND THE GRAY, which aired on CBS on November 14, 16, and 17, 1982.The principal focus is on two families: the Geysers, a farm family from Charlottesville, Virginia who have no prurient interest in the issue of slavery that is essentially fueling the war but are sympathetic to the South; and the Hales, who are owners of a small newspaper in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and anti-slavery/pro-Union. They become a microcosm of this long, costly, bloody war that nearly destroyed America before it could even reach its 90th year of existence as a country; and even in the Geyser family, there is a schism. Both families, though, do reunite after the end of the war, but not before the war more or less claims its last victim in President Abraham Lincoln, when John Wilkes Booth guns him down at Ford's Theatre.In the meantime, the Civil War is re-enacted, under the bounds of what could be shown on television, with a fair amount of pain and horror without an over-reliance of melodrama, but with solid acting by a huge cast of great people, including Stacy Keach; Colleen Dewhurst; Lloyd Bridges; Warren Oates (in one of his last roles, as Major Welles); Sterling Hayden (as John Brown); Rip Torn (as General Ulysses S. Grant); Robert Vaughn; Paul Winfield; Julius Harris; Diane Baker; Rory Calhoun; and, last but not least, Gregory Peck, in his first-ever dramatic TV appearance, as Lincoln. All of this is brilliantly bought together by veteran director Andrew V. McLaglen, who had done the Civil War in fictional form prior to this, in the form of 1969's THE UNDEFEATED (with John Wayne), and 1965's SHENANDOAH (with James Stewart).Even in the restrictive confines of TV, and even when compared to later films on the subject like GETTYSBURG and LINCOLN, THE BLUE AND THE GRAY does very little skimping over what war in general, and this singular war in particular, does to people not only on both sides of the battle lines but also to those innocents caught in the middle. And despite its extreme length, of close to six and a half hours, this is still one of the best miniseries ever produced in TV history. It should be watched by anyone serious in understanding our nation's history in general, and the Civil War in particular, and is essential just for anyone still interested in historically based storytelling, small screen or otherwise.

oddchick104 This is such a good movie mainly due to the lack of bias and multiple story lines which keep you hooked throughout the extensive length of the film. I thought that the film was, although of course not the greastest of civil war films, it definitely desearves nothing but good reviews. I saw this movie when i was visiting Utah with family and i had to live in a trailer with my brother and his friend for a few days and all we had was a DVD player and a few movies and some paper and pens. So when we finally decided to watch what seemed like a boring war movie...we never wanted to leave the trailer. Even when invited to go horse-back riding by some neighborhood girls whom my brother had been eyeing. the movie was completely captivating. Everyone should definitely see The Blue and the Gray at LEAST once.

mrc9767 I did not see this movie when it was shown as a mini-series.I happened to like this movie because it gave a simple portrayal of what it might have been like to be a family during this period and having to face the problem of a family that was divided in its loyalties . I thought the makers of this movie followed the history of the period and gave a good presentation of the issues that the people had to deal with at the time. Of course it cannot compare to the recent Civil War Movies or even the Ken Burns series . Given the time that it was made I think it was a good portrayal of the period.My only fault with the movie was the fact that it seemed to put the fall of Vicksburg after the Gettysburg Address. I did not understand how this was allowed to happen given the fact that it seemed to be based on Bruce Catton's work. Can anyone explain this?