Protraph Lack of good storyline.

Voxitype Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Lidia Draper Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

malcotoro When I was a boy in northern England I watched many western movies, fascinated by cowboys and indians. In later life, I collected all of them on video, then replaced them with DVD and BluRay. After watching the historically accurate Spielberg produced Into the West, I sold them all. I came to the realization they were inaccurate… there is only one truth about cowboys and indians and it can be found here in Into the West. Particularly shameful when the children were removed from their aboriginal families, and taken away to schools like Carlisle PA, to be punished for speaking their own language IMHO. Now no other "western" movie is in my collection, Into the West says it all… Comment from Malcolm in Toronto, October 2014

wsroth I read details offered by IMDb on this movie; various summaries; external reviews & several user reviews: Why no one has mentioned or made reference to Michener's "Centennial" surprises me! One of the first ways we expressed our view of this miniseries was a comparison to the book & miniseries. "Of course Spielberg's "Into the West" was done better than "Centennial" though for it's time "Centennial" was done well & I've viewed it many times.Perhaps The Chronicles negative review might have been less critical had the writer refrained from mentioning the "weeks"?? he spent researching this screenplay. Perhaps his research included reading Michener's book.I feel the use of family lineage to report history through the eyes of those living it is a wonderful venue for teaching it. Far more people would recall what they learn if the reviewed it as a story. I learned more about the Trojan Wars through Marian Zimmer-Bradley's "Firebrand" than all the lectures & reading I experienced in high school & college. As did many children about the Roman gods through "The Lightning Thief"I hope to see more of this means of teaching and hope like my college professor in "Women in Antiquity" did with the use of Zimmer-Bradley's "Firebrand" Being one who failed miserably in history due to an inability to recall anything, I wished I could have understood it as my friend did: "... all as a collection of great stories" If our educators incorporated books like those I've mentioned in their instruction, perhaps even weaker students, much like myself, would not only improve grades but, actually retain the information thereafter.Granted Michener is a fantastic story teller & incorporates a wondrous plethora of fact & insight in his books, but, some of his novels aren't the quickest reads I've experienced, but I'm certain numerous authors have attempted to produce similar learning experiences in their books. After all, most avid readers seeking good fiction want "believability" & research is all the key.

vincentlynch-moonoi After reading some of the negative reviews here about this mini-series, I have to conclude that those that are so negative must have been written by people who really didn't pay much attention to what they were watching, and/or knew little about westward-expansion-era history.I'm not saying this is the best mini-series ever produced for television, but it has a scope to it that few television program EVER have. In fact, my one criticism would be a bit too much scope. A couple of times, when new plot lines developed, I though...gee, they're trying to fit everything into this...and there were times I thought they were doing too much, and I would have preferred a little more depth. But, still and all, this is a remarkable television production.The acting here is consistently strong. If I were to single one actor out for praise, it would be Matthew Settle. Excellent performance. I was sorry to see him go (as characters age in the series, new actors take their place with the role).While I cannot speak for the entire series, I was impressed by the depiction of the Sand Creek Massacre, since I have been there and read a bit about the event. It seemed to be a very accurate depiction of the event...and of the attitude of Chivington, whose actions caused more blood spilt from that point of time and into the future, than any other single event in the Indian Wars.A perfect drama. Probably not. But far, far above the quality of most of what's on television. Highly recommended. The rating "8" is for a television drama.

murpz This is an awesome, awesome miniseries (or 12 hour movie, depending how you look at it). The title "Into the West" might make you think this is another movie about the US and its expansion westward, settling the wild west. You'd be very wrong. This movie focuses heavily on the experience of the people who were already there, and what the invasion meant to them and their culture. Spielberg has used his incredible talents to produce a powerful chronicle of an epic clash of civilizations, and the profoundness of what was lost. It's also a good movie to watch, with top notch acting and cinematography. I caught the last episode of this when it was on TV, and when I saw it available on DVD, I immediately bought it so I could see the whole thing. I'm very satisfied with my purchase!