1776 [Blu-ray]

I have always loved the movie 1776, it always seemed like I had to wait for Independence Day for it to be on television. Then Sony pictures decided to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the movie by releasing a 4K-UHD blu ray edition. The director's cut restored 24 minutes, which were cut from the theatrical version and did show in ultra high definition , with a dolby 7.1 soundtrack. Technically, this is a good as it gets. Now I can enjoy the music and drama whenever I want, in crystal clear video and audio.

They do take some liberties but having studied American history in detail I was not offended by any of them. I highly recommend this as a quick and easy way to learn about the American revolution. Yes I know they were not all standing there at the end signing. The only thing better than this is the John Adams miniseries which has even more detail and is replete with realism. This musical is funny and informative.

Always loved this movie. Glad to finally get it on DVD.

I love this movie/musical. Besides it being humorous, fun, and entertaining, it is a very engaging way to learn about history. I force my kids to watch it around July 4th almost every year - they protest and then they enjoy it none-the-less. You can tell that the subject was well researched as anecdotes from letters and historical documents have been placed into the script and songs. While some of the songs are cute and witty such as t4eh song about choosing the national symbol (The Eagle or the Turkey or the Dove?). Others are very serious in nature. It does not shy from controversial topics which the Founding Fathers had to deal with in order to come together to declare independence. Even though the events leading up to the writing of the Declarartion of independence involve mainly a cast of men, the playwrights included a couple women in the story. For me, Martha Jefferson's appearance represents the realities for the men of choosing to serve their 'about-to-be-formed-country'; that the men were all away from their families and homes for an extended period of time. They missed their families. More notably, Abigail Adams is portrayed as the equal partner that she was to John Adams. She's stuck running the farm and taking care of sick children while John Adams was gone to Philadelphia to encourage the colonies to declare independence. Abigail aids him and the cause of independence both spiritually, thru her loving support in her letters, as well as directly by organizing the women of Boston to make saltpeter(gunpowder) for the army. Finally there's a song with General Washington's messenger where he sings about the young men in the army and the terrible reality of death in battle. This play/musical makes me appreciate all the sacrifices people made to make our democracy a reality. And it reminds me that we are still in the process of carrying out the Founders' vision of creating a country founded solely on democratic principles and freedom for all. I can watch it again and again and never get tired of it!

1776 is a wonderful movie (based on a successful stage show) on a most unlikely story: the writing and signing of the Declaration of Independence. William Daniels is John Adams, Howard Da Silva is the embodiment of Ben Franklin and "White Shadow" Ken Howard is Thomas Jefferson, all in the roles of their careers. Though most of the actors are unknowns a the time, either carried over from the stage or just starting out, a few did become familiar from television (James Noble, NJ delegate, in "Benson"; John Cullum, SC's Edward Rutledge, in "Northern Exposure"). Jefferson's briefly-seen wife is Blythe Danner, unfortunately best known today as the mother of Gwyneth Paltrow. two actors (Jonathan Moore, playing GA's heroic Lyman Hall; and Patrick Hines as MD's Samuel Chase) went on to other wig-and-breeches roles in "Amadeus"). A NY representative is played by Howard Caine, who had a recurring role as a nasty Nazi on "Hogan's Heroes." Many good songs (as well as several that are quite mediocre). but as the Founders are presented in all-singing, all-dancing silliness none of the tunes became standards.The good: for aficionados of the movie, like me, scenes have been restored. To me, no good movie can be too long and restored scenes (including at least one never-seen song) add depth and help the film make sense in places where it may have been confusing before. The costumes and setting (especially the remarkable Independence Hall set) are lovely, with great attention to period detail, and are seen to good effect in widescreen with the restored scenes. Observe the delightful water-wheel during Danner's song. "1776" is a palatable history lesson that paints broad, general ideas that especially gets across the danger these brave souls were in, and also shows how the dirty business of political compromise left some legacies that would not be solved for another century (while managing to whitewash or sweep under the rug the more irritating political factioneering that divided the Continental Congress as thoroughly as every Congress since). Best of all, the movie has some of the finest cinematography I've ever seen confined to a small room! What they did with the camera in Independence Hall is breathtaking, and Oscar nominated . . . but inexplicably lost out to "Cabaret."The bad: At least one scene, where John Adams describes the roles played by Franklin, Washington and the general's horse in the Revolution, has an alternative take that doesn't work nearly as well as the take seen on television versions and the previous home video release (which I also own). The history in the movie is mostly bunk and the reputations of patriots as worthy as Franklin, Adams and Jefferson are smeared. Also on the DVD version is a feature-length commentary that is unusually self-serving, making, as usual, left-wing filmmakers look like martyrs to (what else?) a Republican President. If you compare what Democrats said about Republican presidents from Lincoln to Donald Trump (and they have been remarkably consistent from 1861 to the present day), you can take their "heroism" with a grain of salt. I'm thoroughly disgusted with the "heroism" of movie folk which is almost always as fictional as the roles they play on-screen. They whine about cuts but "1776" was simply too long and one of the weaker songs was deleted. Big whoop. Spare me your mendacious histrionics. Your movie makes the U.S. founders laughing-stocks in many ways; try doing that to the never-buried relic, the murdering Lenin, in the USSR and you'd disappear forever in the Lubyanka or the camps and your film would be destroyed. It's curious how the people who most benefit from the freedoms deriving from the American founders are so little appreciated by those who most exploit them."1776" is a movie about ideas and ideals and that's awfully hard to get across in a movie; it plays better with the limited mobility of the stage. But the gorgeous sets, the amazing cinematography, the acting of the principals and the overall silliness make this an enjoyable history lesson.

1776 A truly great movie musical about the signing of the American Declaration of Independence. Have seen it twice - once in UK cinema, once on UK TV, but when oh when will someone have the foresight to provide UK viewers with a Region 2 version of the dvd.

Well worth a watch even though the music is terrible. The lyrics are interesting and it really tells the story but there isn't one song that you'll end up humming. Glad I've got it, though.

This musical is great. Not too sure of the historical facts, then what do I know loved it anyway.

If you like a good musical with American history than this is your film. A lot of the points they make make in the film are historically acturate. I always view it during the 4th July!

A great musical, somewhat unusual but I love the songs and the sentiment. This is the restored version with the cuts restored. Some of the restored sections are not as good quality as the rest in term of picture quality but they are essential to humanise the characters. This does deserve wider viewing across the pond. View in a multi region dvd player or on your computer.