tradereight Awful - terrible acting (and accents!)by the "leading" ladies, terrible editing and story telling. Gone With The Wind told the story better regarding the Civil War. Potential was there given the concept and time span covered in the book. I found moments to where I was just "zoned out" during the film given the lack of connecting the story lines. Filmed in Texas the movie did have a sweeping "scenic" and historic feel. Of course the themes through the story include Indian relations and slavery. This is the first Jolie film I've ever watched (don't care for her) and it will be the last. Thankfully I watched it on TV and didn't pay to see it.

JamiDanell Not all movies are perfect. This was a perfect chic flick and I absolutely love it! Wish it was out on DVD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I watched it on Lifetime last summer and just simply couldn't get it out of my head. The realationships and hard times these women have were enough to make me cry!

BabyGenius . . . but its one flaw is too glaring to permit that. The problem: The plot is *insane*. Within the first twenty minutes of the movie, the main character, somewhere-around-ten-year-old Euphemia, has been orphaned and uprooted from her home, The Alamo has fallen to Mexican soldiers, and the wives and children of the Texan army have to high-tail it to . . . erm, somewhere else. The movie reads kind of like one of those stories written by bored fifth-graders who pass around a piece of paper, each putting down a sentence without being allowed to see what just happened, and it doesn't come close to making sense. What emerges in this case is a repeating sequence of menacing-looking guys showing up on horseback and causing, whether deliberately or indirectly, the demise of a handful of supporting characters.What could obviously have been a seventeenth-rate TV movie was saved by spectacular performances from each and every member of the cast. Dana Delany is the ideal big sister, reassuring and confident, but allows us occasional glimpses at her fear and grief that save the role of Sarah from being stereotyped and make it touching and very real. Annabeth Gish endows her character Euphemia with just the right combination of sincerity, compassion, and stubbornness to keep her believable and endearing.(NOTE: ONE SMALL SPOILER COMING UP IN THIS PARAGRAPH)I have never seen Angelina Jolie act in anything else (unless you count trailers), but her absolutely flawless performance here as Georgia has instantly made her one of my favorite actresses. She's flexible enough to infuse many of her lines in this very serious movie with a charming brand of ironic humor ("I'll be old before I'm twenty-five and dead before I'm thirty!") and convey absolute rock-bottom misery literally two scenes later. I have never cried harder than I did while watching Georgia struggle through her tears to sing her dying child to sleep.(FURTHER NOTE: THE SPOILER'S OVER) I could go on and praise the specific high points of every actor in the movie, but suffice it to say that the performances are perfect and more than make up for the out-there plot and flat script. Even were it not for that fact (sorry, opinion, I guess), I strongly recommend - nay, I insist (lol) - that anybody with even a remote interest in costume see this movie. The pioneer women wear really boring clothes (except Euphemia once dons a very strange and very ugly hat), but spoiled plantation girl Georgia's gowns are real works of art.

John I saw this movie when it first appeared on television, and when renting videos recently, I saw this title, and remember being impressed. I rented it, and was delighted all over again! What a wonderful movie! It is interesting to watch - The stories evoke curiosity and passion for history, something seldom seen in movies, much less made-for-television movies. The acting was beautiful! Every actor performed with realism, and with a passion for their characters.I have only one complaint: Not enough of Matilda Lockhart´s story was told. I found her character to be most interesting, and her fate to be the one that stuck with me long after I saw it. Anne Tremko, the actress who played Matilda, is spectacular! She was understated yet interesting, and her enthusiasm for the role lit up the screen. After seeing this, I rented the few other movies she was in. While only two were particularly good (The Member of the Wedding and My Antonia), she did a great job with what she had in each and every picture.I thoroughly enjoyed this movie, and Anne Tremko´s performance, as well. I recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys history, movies, or being uplifted.