About the Show
“The Great War” is a four-hour cinematic documentary covering U.S. involvement in World War I in the critical year of 1918. After three years of horrific battle in the trenches of France and Belgium, the Allies are on the verge of collapse—and Germany the cusp of victory. The United States is forced to rapidly train, arm, and ship millions of young soldiers overseas to Europe for the first time.
Our story follows General John J. Pershing, leader of the American Expeditionary Force, who is charged with training and deploying an army almost from scratch; Michael B. Ellis, a young man fighting with the Army’s soon to be legendary Big Red One; and Horace Pippin and Henry Johnson, brave African American soldiers whose courage in battle helped their regiment be christened the Harlem Hellfighters.
“The Great War” weaves together the stories of these four men to tell one story: how an isolationist America reluctantly entered World War I and emerged a global power.
