Customer Reviews

1776 (DVD WS)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I saw this movie when it was first released many years ago. Ever since I've been impressed by the music and the spirit of the production. It brings together the many perspectives of the men who formed the Congress that created the Declaration of Independence. These were not a group of men with the same idea. They were men who came to the congress with their own particular ideas and ideals which they wanted to preserve. Some of the characters, Caesar Rodney and James Wilson are rather inaccurate but they add to the drama of the production. Edward Rutledge's performance of Molasses to Rum to Slaves is particularly moving and illustrates the many perspectives of the participants at the congress. Howard Silva and James Daniels are outstanding as Franklin and John Adams but all the actors by their performances add tremendously to the production. Although it has historical inaccuracies I would highly recommend this film to all to get a better perspective as to the creation of the United States.

Peter Stone wrote the book for the musical dramedy 1776; Sherman Edwards provided music. There were 1217 Broadway performances between 3/16/69 and 2/13/72. Twelve opening night cast members reprise their roles in the motion picture as does one replacement actor. (Hey, that makes 13!) The show's pace is understandably slow as this is in large part a story of impasse and the negotiations necessary to resolve it.

Before its Radio City Music Hall premiere in 1972, Jack Warner gave Pres. Nixon a private screening of the film. Nixon thought the song "Cool, Considerate Men" to be offensive and it was removed at his request. In fact, over a half-hour of cuts were made, bringing running time down to 142 minutes. This DVD edition restores 24 minutes, leaving 1776 about 10 shy of its original three-hour length.

As on stage, this version of the Tony-winning musical concerns representatives of thirteen colonies and their struggle to reach consensus on uniting against an oppressive British government and monarch. The biggest obstacle to overcome is that a decision for independence from Britain be unanimous once specific details of a carefully crafted Declaration are parsed, debated and agreed upon or deleted.

Parenthetical number preceding title is a 1 to 10 imdb viewer poll rating.

(7.2) 1776 (1972) - William Daniels/Howard Da Silva/Ken Howard/Blythe Danner/David Ford/Virginia Vestoff/Ray Middleton

Gives us a glimpse into the "human-ness" of our founding fathers and their persistence to eventually attain independence. Should be a "must" viewing in all schools to help today's kids understand what their country is all about.

More of a play than a musical but a good account of the situation when the Declaration of Independence was drafted and signed. Music wasn't memorable. DVD plays faultlessly.

Wonderful old movie with tongue-in-cheek humor that even kids would like ... if they gave it a chance.