WolfgangR5150 The first review here was obviously wrote by someone who thinks that when Hollywood makes something they call a true story it must be all true. Watch the movie Ashes of Waco for actual facts on this issue. Granted Koresh claimed to be something he was not, this does not mean that this was a well executed plan by the ATF. Fact, the ATF could have arrested Koresh in town since he went there often. What we do have here is a Cliton era Janet Reno failure as usual. Do the research because this movie may try to capture the day many brave ATF agents lost there lives but it also slants the story to make sure you think that this was 100% the people of Mt Carmnels fault.

frankfob This is a first-rate accounting of the tragic deaths and destruction brought about by the actions and beliefs of a home-grown terrorist named David Koresh and his band of paranoid religious fanatics. Koresh may be (as is evidenced by several of the reviews on this page) worshiped by the lunatic fringe of right-wing government-hating zealots, but he was nothing more than a domestic version of Osama bin Laden and any number of power-crazed killers who cloak themselves in religion as an excuse to unleash their hatred and violence on the world, and this film does a good job of showing Koresh to be exactly that. Tim Daly is terrific as Koresh; I don't know if he was nominated for an Emmy for this, but if he wasn't he should have been, it's that good of a job. Director Dick Lowry stages the final assault in a straightforward manner, giving viewers a chilling and sobering idea of the volume of murderous gunfire that the federal agents were up against. The final result was, besides the murders of several law enforcement agents and the deaths of Koresh and his fellow terrorists, the terrible tragedy of the women and children of Koresh's band who, because of his fanaticism. hatred and insanity, he decreed had to die with him when he blew up the compound. The film has been criticized for taking some liberties with the facts, as most biographies do, and that may be true to a degree, since it was rushed into production so quickly, and it probably wouldn't have hurt if the filmmakers had taken a bit more time in preparation. But all things considered, this is an impressive accomplishment for a project that was put together in such a short time. You should definitely check it out.

jeniferrobin This slip-shod piece of government propaganda was rushed to production before the final fire killed over 75 men, women and children. Although the disclaimer at the beginning of the film claims it was thoroughly researched, the stereotypes in which the characters were portrayed were comical, if not tragic misrepresentations. Filled with downright lies, the writer of this garbage later apologized to the surviving members and the families of those lost for his role in perpetuating the horrible myths surrounding David Koresh and his followers. (See David Thibodeau's _A Place Called Waco_, page 207 and writer Phil Penningroth's own "Righting Waco: Confessions of a Hollywood Propagandist" available at http://www.killingthebuddha.com/dogma/righting_waco.htm) This piece does play a role in the history of the standoff, as a clear example of the dead wrong information surrounding the standoff and raid. Therefore, take it with a grain of salt.

thomjerod This is a very well-made and fascinating account of a very bad thing that happened in our great country. It gives a fair accounting to both sides. The moral I learned from this story is that, at present, our society is unprepared to deal with a situation like Waco.