Customer Reviews

The Howards of Virginia [VHS]

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

 

 

This movie,adapted by Sidney Buchman from Elizabeth Page's massive 1939 best-selling novel "The Tree of Liberty",is one of those curious Hollywood hybrids:part grand historical epic,part modest family soap opera.Set in the second half of the eighteenth century during the build-up to,and subsequent battles of,the War of Independence,the story centres on the the relationship between Matt Howard (Cary Grant),a down-to-earth,restless,spirited and idealistic young woodsman,and Jane Peyton (Martha Scott),a privileged Virginia debutante.They meet,marry,and move to the rough-and-ready district of Matt's youth.Slowly,however,the differences that once seemed not to matter - class,for example,and old family allegiances - come to serve as the source of serious tensions.Matt,an old and firm friend of Thomas Jefferson,is drawn into the struggle againt the British colonial powers,eventually joining the army and fighting in the revolutionary war,while Jane,reflecting the conservative values of her cosseted upbringing,remains fervently opposed to the republican cause.Matt,therefore,faces two battles:one to defeat the British,the other to save his marriage. This ambitious movie never quite finds a proper balance between the epic and the intimate,moving backwards and forwards between the two without ever really finding either coherence or conviction.Scott is competent in an unimaginative role,but Grant is badly miscast and never looks or sounds remotely at ease.Sidney Buchman,a fine screenwriter who would later become a victim of McCarthyism,is too eager to illustrate his strong beliefs about Jeffersonian democracy and its legacy,turning some scenes into condescending history lessons and some characters into caricatures (he covered the same ground intellectually in "The Talk of the Town",but with far greater subtlety and a more assured dramatic touch). This is not,however,a bad movie,just a disappointing one.The period detail is vivid,particularly in those scenes that were shot on location in Williamsburg,and the action is staged and choreographed with a certain degree of skill.If one is frustrated by the unevenness and clumsiness one is still able,none the less,to admire the scope and the energy.The print,apart from the occasional pop and crackle,is in fairly good condition,and this particular edition comes with an original theatrical trailer.

This is a fine movie for adults to watch along with their children. I totally enjoyed the political IN-correctness of this movie. Filmed on location in Willimsburg before the town was turned into Revolutionary Themepark, the street scenes truly were what they would have been during the revolution. Historical movies today work too hard at either beating us over the head with societal inequalities or pretending they didn't exist. In the 1700s Legislators were men, women stayed on the sidelines, black people were slaves. To deny the truths of the period is to deny the valour of the people who fought for change since then. The story moved quickly and the reasons for Revolution were clearly spelled out as affecting the whole nation, not just about one or two people as we have recently seen in movies like "The Patriot". Although most of the women's costumes were awful (zippers were obvious), the furniture detail and most of the men's costumes were well done. I would recommend this movie as worthwhile viewing.

I agree with those reviews posted previously that Cary Grant was seriously miscast in this film. He does indeed stumble and plod through the proceedings trying too hard. If you like Cary Grant and are a fan of his in ANYTHING, then you will probably like this film.

There are some good things in it: The cast of supporting actors is excellent most notably Martha Scott as Jane Peyton (who becomes Cary Grant's wife in the film)...she is outstanding as the aristocratic wife trying to adjust to new surroundings; Sir Cedric Hardwicke is excellent as well bringing his classic style of characterization to the film; Richard Carlson is likeable and convincing as Thomas Jefferson; the young men who play Grant's sons Peyton and James are also to be commended. Sadly, the one flaw in the cast is Grant himself who is entirely unsuited to this role.

The cinematography is fine but the screenplay could have used a little more tightening up; the direction plods at an uneven pace.

The DVD is fine quality but aside from subtitles and chapter selection, no other extras are included.

There are better historical dramas out there and most certainly better Cary Grant films.

Upon reading some reviews I was afraid I wasn't going to like this Epic Historical("Americana") Drama I got as a birthday gift, but gladly I enjoyed the almost two hours of film.

Cary Grant is my favorite screen actor, top of the tops, and yes, this is not his usual role or movie, but he did a great work impersonating heroic Matt Howard (from Albemarle Virginia), who rises from a being a poor lad to become a hero & notorious citizen. I think his performance is very good, it's believable, although Cary Grant fans, who like him mostly in comedy, probably won't like this one and probably will skip it.

Martha Scott, an actress not a "star", gives a very fine, strong, performance as his upper-crust wife (Jane Peyton), and kudos to Cedric Hardwicke for his complex portrayal of Grant's nemesis and brother-in-law (Fleetwood Peyton). Richard Carlson is very sympathetic as Thomas Jefferson.

Fine sets, good pacing and directon by Frank Lloyd (who also directed "Mutiny on the Bounty", among many others), and the DVD transfer is pretty good.

Great entertainment!

As much as it pains me to say, this is a terrible movie for Cary-and a terrible movie in general. All of Grant's strengths are hidden while he is asked to play a rugged, outdoorsman with no polish, class or sophistication. It sounds like a bad joke, doesn't it? Well it is. It hurts to watch this great actor stumble through this movie. Please keep in mind that I am a huge(maybe even obsessive) Grant fan, owning over 30 of his DVDs. This is, however, by far my least favorite. Sorry. Save your money and invest in the new Criterion edition of "Notorious."

Being from Virginia, I am of course partial to movies about it. Having spent a lot of time touring historical homes in and around the state, this movie in particular stands out. Part of the movie was filmed at Carters Grove Plantation, one of the James River Plantations. Cary Grant was great friends with the McCrea's who owned the plantation in the 1930's-40's. He loved the house so much that he recommended to the film company that they use the house for the home of inlaws in the movie. (The plantation was also used for the George Washington miniseries with Barry Bostwick/as the Fairfax home)
I recommend this movie to anyone that loves Cary Grant. Mr Grant's portrayal is very moving, Richard Carlson as Thomas Jefferson isn't so bad either !

A notorious box-office disaster in its day, The Howards of Virginia (also known as The Tree of Liberty) is an engaging but curious colonial drama set during the American War of Independence with Cary Grant in Gunga Din rambunctious tearaway mode, which is a bit embarrassing when he overdoes it, which is often. The most surprising thing about Frank Lloyd's picture is that despite the amount of money and resources being thrown into it, the director clearly has no interest whatsoever in spectacle - hundreds of extras are featured in battles, parades or crowd scenes that are dismissed in a single establishing shot as if he wanted to hide their presence and get back indoors to his stars. Still, it's an entertaining enough saga. No extras on the DVD at all.

At 115 minutes, this Hollywood historical film runs a bit long, and Cary Grant isn't the best fit for Matt Howard, but he is still fun to watch and the film covers interesting bits of the events leading up to the American Revolution, such as the Boston Tea Party. We also meet Thomas Jefferson and listen to Patrick Henry. The film's tension comes from the class differences between rebel Matt and his conservative wife, Jane. While the sets and costumes look good, the story lags at times, but this would be a worthwhile rental for Grant fans or Revolution cinephiles.

The dvd features are: subtitles in English, French or Japanese, and trailers for three other classic films.

I saw this movie while flipping through the channels and watched it briefly. I purchased it for a "surprise" gift for friends with the same last name. I really can't rate this item as I did not watch the complete movie. However, the DVD was received promptly and in good condition, as always, from Amazon.com

If it weren't for Cary Grant, I would never have finished watching this video/film. I was bored by the lack of character development, but Cary Grant's smoldering presence makes the movie worth seeing once.