Six Days in August

Just finished watching Six Days in August in theatres. Very professionally and creatively made film. The cinematography was awesome, the score was moving, and, while it seemed the writers struggled sometimes to narrow down the elements necessary for their story, the acting portrayed by the actors (particularly with John Donovan Wilson) was superb. The ensemble cast did a fantastic job of carrying the story and providing the audience with a close look into the days after the LDS prophets death. Definitely would recommend seeing in theatres. Very well made and would hope that the film's reach keeps extending.

This is a wonderful movie to show what Brigham Young was really like, according to so many different people's journal entries from back in the 1800s. This movie even touches on the difficulty that people have accepting polygamy, and gave us a peek into many other lives we here less about like Heber c Kimball, George A. Smith, and wives like Violate Kimball and Mary Ann Young.

It does flip or forward and backward in time a little. As long as you pay attention to the dates printed on the screen it should not be hard to follow.

As for the other review that said polygamy was "enthusiasticly accepted by the women", they must have not seen the movie, or at least not the scene where Emma was crying saying that she is being tested beyond what she can handle, and Joseph said he would not choose this.

Looking back nearly two centuries, this fascinating view is both touching and enlightening of the interplay between Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and other apostles and early restored gospel leaders. It repeatedly portrays intense human reactions as these people led the church in hostile circumstances to follow God's commandments. After years of oppression, it is striking to see intense personal dramas as Joseph Smith was martyred, with a focus on what then to do. We see how there was so much needed and how the early church responded. The superb acting, writing, direction, cinematography, and music absolutely brought it home.

I was very disappointed that this film didn't portray the historical facts accurately. I did enjoy the camera work and scenery, but the acting, screenwriting and story was pure fiction. There are several other films that depict this times period that are much more historically accurate. It tends to portray polygamy as something that was enthusiastically embraced by women. Nothing could be further from the historical truth. Many women left the church due to polygamy and many others did not embrace the doctrine. Do yourself a favor and read the book Rough Stone Rolling that covers this time period in a much more accurate and meaningful way.

Beautiful cinematography and music pulled the viewer into this historical story of the early LDS church. It told the story of a defining moment in time as the church grappled with Joseph Smith's successor. We learned several things that we had not known before. The casting was excellent. The music was powerful in its subtle use of hymns recognizable to church members. The use of 'Praise to the Man' at the end underscored the film's theme of Joseph Smith as the Prophet. The actual run time of the film was longer than we thought as we never looked at our watches during it.

We enjoyed the movie and definitely would recommend it.