This exceptional recreation of the Civil War era in Missouri is brilliant--in the quality of the casting, acting, writing, and period detail--and maddening, in that it ends with every important plot line unresolved. I viewed this two-hour movie on an overseas flight. The exact length of the movie was two hours, and this, coupled with the fact that there numerous blackout sections that seemed timed to host commercial messages, makes me think that this "movie" was designed as a mini-series, and somehow there was not enough funding to complete it (which would easily have required another two hours). My rating of five reflects a perfect score for a movie that is exactly one-half completed. I do think it's worth viewing for the excellence of what's here, but the viewer should know that NONE of the critical questions raised for any of the major characters are answered, even implicitly. In other words, you have to enjoy the journey, because there's no ending to enjoy.