1776 - The Director's Cut

James Troutman

Date: 2002/08/25
Last revised: 2003/07/13

"At a stage in life when other men prosper I am reduced to living in Philadelphia. Philadelphia!"

John Adams makes it sound like a curse word. It's the low point of his effort to convince the other members of the Continental Congress to vote for independence from Great Britain. The entire Southern delegation has just stormed out, George Washington's army appears to be on the verge of "total annihilation," and Adams has even alienated Ben Franklin, up to now his most stalwart ally. "The precious cause for which I've labored these several years has come to nothing."

So what does Adams do? As in other moments of crisis, he turns to his wife Abigail for support and advice. That she is 300 miles away at their farm in Braintree, Massachusetts Bay, is not a problem; he simply conjures her up in his mind. This is, after all, a movie. To be exact, it is the DVD of the restored version of the 1972 film based upon the 1969 Broadway musical about events in Philadelphia during May through early July of the year that the 13 British colonies became the United States of America.

It's 1776.

Of course, we all know how it turns out (or do we?), but what's remarkable is that the film manages to generate real suspense, and it does so while sticking very close to the historical record, allowing for just enough license to build a dramatic arc. Much of the dialog and even some of the song lyrics are taken directly from the writings and utterances of the persons involved.

"What a bastardly bunch we are!" says one of the delegates. Indeed, for this is not the version of events you were probably taught in grade school.

While never didactic, yet always entertaining, 1776 is a mini history course in itself. We learn, for example, that John Adams was the leading agitator for independence and that he made an obnoxious bore of himself in the process; that Thomas Jefferson would rather go home to visit with his new wife than write the document that was to become the Declaration of Independence; that the writing of that document, in fact, was merely a ploy, a delaying tactic, a means of buying time in hopes of convincing the other delegates to vote "yea" for independency; that in those days Maryland was pronounced Mary Land.

The songs, written by Sherman Edwards, a former history teacher, are all expertly integrated into the fabric of the piece; more so than in most musicals (Sondheim's always excepted), nearly every number advances the story. There are no "song cues" telegraphing the beginning of a number. In the movie's funniest sequence, the song "But, Mr. Adams--", the Declaration Committee tries to decide who shall write the document, each member coming up with one weak excuse after another. It makes hilarious use of musical comedy conventions to serve up little historical tidbits, while driving home the point that none of these men had any idea just how significant the Declaration would become to future generations.

Of course, knowing a little bit about these people can enhance one's enjoyment, as in my favorite song, the exuberant waltz "He Plays the Violin," wherein two horny old men (Franklin and Adams) attempt to pry intimate details from Martha Jefferson about the night she has just spent with her husband Tom. If one knows that she was to die but six short years hence (from complications associated with childbirth) there is an extra layer of poignancy in her final verse where she imagines her own death:

When heaven calls to me,
Sing me no sad elegy.
Say I died
Loving bride,
Loving wife,
Loving life

When 1776 was released in movie theaters, its producer Jack Warner (over the objections of director Peter Hunt) snipped about 30 minutes in order to shorten its running time; the Restored Director's Cut DVD finally presents the movie as Hunt originally intended, including the musical number "Cool, Cool, Considerate Men" which was excised at the request of Richard Nixon! (Listen to the Director and Screenwriter commentary for the details.) It's an important number because it restores balance to the piece, showing that Adams' antagonists were just as arrogant as he, and that they were motivated mainly by self-interest, the protection of their wealth and property, as they sing of their "neatly ordered lives With well-endowered wives."

Director Hunt and Screenwriter Peter Stone have avoided most of the problems associated with adapting a musical play into the film medium, opening up the action at sensible points and adding a few bits that they couldn't do in the theater (like the convict-borne litter in which Franklin arrives at the congressional sessions). In fact the screenplay is a very faithful adaptation of the original play, more so than most musicals, but the proceedings rarely feel like a filmed play, thanks to the constantly moving camera and Hunt's fondness for long takes.

There is but one major miscue, and that, alas, is in the opening number, "Sit Down, John!" Oh, it's a terrific piece and probably works very well on stage. In it we learn that John Adams is an unflagging champion of independency but that he is arrogant and obnoxious, and the other delegates can't stand him; that "it's hot as hell in Philadel-phia" (I can relate to that!); and that the Continental Congress can't compromise on even the simplest of issues (Congresses haven't changed much since those days). The problem occurs when the cast begins to sing; the dynamics are all wrong (the massed voices of Congressional delegates are scarcely louder than John Adams's lone voice), they are painfully obviously lip-synching, and we can't pick out any individual voices in the ensemble, so the moment seems phony. Fortunately, this is just about the only wrong note in the entire film; in all the other numbers we have no sense of being transported into a different acoustic, and the lip-synching is almosty completely transparent.

The sets and costumes are uniformly excellent; the recreation of Independence Hall (called the State House in those days) is faithful down to the privy out front, which actually plays a minor part in the action.

William Daniels as John Adams is the obvious standout in the outstanding cast, foreshadowing his portrayal of Dr. Mark Craig in the TV show St. Elsewhere more than 10 years later. (Come to think of it, the character of Mark Craig bears more than just a passing resemblance to John Adams.) Howard Da Silva owns the role of Benjamin Franklin; I'll probably not be satisfied with anyone else playing Franklin ever again. Ken Howard is a properly stiff Tom Jefferson ("a redheaded tombstone" as Franklin calls him), and John Cullum as South Carolina's Edward Rutledge elicits chills in the show's most dramatic number, "Molasses to Rum [to Slaves]."

As a matter of fact, most of this cast appeared in the original Broadway production (Cullum was a mid-run replacement), with but a few exceptions. The primary members of the original creative team came along for the ride as well, including choreographer Onna White (watch how she manages the quill pen in the "But, Mr. Adams" number), director Peter Hunt, and writer Peter Stone. Stone's book for the original play may be the best ever devised for a Broadway musical, and now at last it can all be seen again in the restored version on DVD. In an alternate audio track Hunt and Stone provide a lively commentary, one of the better ones on DVD, supplying lots of information about the restored edition, the historical accuracy of the plot, and anecdotes about the cast and crew.

I've deliberately avoided saying very much about the events that the movie depicts, because unless you are a devoted history buff, there are apt to be plenty of surprises awaiting you, with Ben Franklin serving up a particularly delightful one in the final scene.

Update (2003/07/13)

Upon re-reading my review and re-viewing the film, I can't help but wonder why I didn't mention the excellent work contributed by Virginia Vestoff as Abigail Adams, Blythe Danner as Martha Jefferson, and especially Donald Madden who makes John Dickinson a worthy antagonist to the coalition advocating independence. And let's not forget Ron Holgate who makes the most of the small but pivotal part of Richard Henry Lee.

A few months ago writer Peter Stone passed away. He will be missed.

Additional Information

Internet Movie Database entry for 1776

Related Products

1776 - The Director's Cut DVD of the 1972 Motion Picture -- see my review of this DVD release of the movie. Executive Summary: if you love the show, you'll want this DVD.
	1776 - Original Broadway Cast recording CD (1969) -- an indispensable recording for anyone who loves 1776. William Daniels is the definitive John Adams. Alas, because of illness, Howard Da Silva doesn't appear, and his replacement, while not bad, just isn't ... Howard Da Silva.
1776 - New Broadway Cast recording CD of the 1997 New York Revival -- not a bad recording, but it will probably appeal mainly to those who saw the revival or to fans of Mr. Spiner. And completists, of course. :-)
	1776 - Vocal Selections -- includes most of the songs from the original production in playable piano arrangements that are mostly similar to the arrangements in the show. There are some notable exceptions, however, e.g., Is Anybody There?, which has a different arrangement and different lyrics from what appear in the show.
1776: A Musical Play by Peter Stone and Sherman Edwards -- includes the complete text of the play, a Historical Note by the authors, the complete text of Jefferson's original draft for the Declaration of Independence with the elisions clearly marked, and a bibliography.