'The Vietnam War: A Film by Ken Burns & Lynn Novick' Episode Review: 'Deja Vu (1858-1961)'
Episode One: Déjà Vu (1858-1961) Written by: Geoffrey C. Ward Directed by: Ken Burns & Lynn Novick After a long and brutal war, Vietnamese revolutionaries led by Ho Chi Minh end nearly a century of French colonial occupation. With the Cold War intensifying, Vietnam is divided in two. Communists in the North aim to reunify the country, while America supports Ngo Dinh Diem’s untested regime in the South. – from The Vietnam War’ s Episode List. On September 17, 2017, PBS premiered “Déjà Vu (1858-1961),” Episode One of The Vietnam War, a 10-part documentary series directed by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick ( The War, Prohibition ). Produced by Burns, Novick, and Sarah Botstein, this 18-hour exploration of one of the most divisive events in modern American history was 10 years in the making. It features interviews of participants from all sides, including civilians and veterans from North and South Vietnam. (Hence the series’ tagline: “There is no single truth in war.”