Warm up the DVD player for the 4th of July holiday Revolutionary War Marathon. Aside from numerous nonfiction documentaries on the History Channel and other cable channels, there are also TV movies and miniseries like “George Washington”. But, despite a surprising shortage of movies focusing on one of the most pivotal events of American history as its theme, there are some theatrical releases. Here are the top picks:
1776 (1972). A musical adapted from the stage, built around the drafting and signing of the Declaration of Independence. Typical Hollywood history, with bits of accuracy and plenty of inaccuracy, but an entertaining mixture with great music and humor. The central figure is John Adams (William Daniels), a composite of both John and Sam Adams, Thomas Jefferson (Ken Howard), and Benjamin Franklin (Howard da Silva) with Da Silva the quintessential portrayer of of Philadelphia’s favorite son. Adams is brilliant, tactless, and direct, Franklin is a moderating influence (“Congratulations, John. You just made your greatest contribution to Independence: you kept your flap shut.”), and Jefferson is the man who can best express the will of the people on paper.
The Patriot (2000). Mel Gibson’s excellent Hollywood treatment of the war in the South where the British turned following repeated failure to win decisively in the North. Gibson’s character is a composite of several figures, including Francis Marion, the Swamp Fox who, like Gibson’s character, bases his handful of freedom fighters on an island in the middle of the vast Southern swamps. Throughout history, there’ve always been a huge percentage of people, sometimes even a majority, who have tried to get everyone to just leave them alone. This script demonstrates how many, like Gibson’s character, are drawn into it against their will by circumstances. A much discussed highlight is an early confrontation in which Gibson, a war veteran, chases down and dispatches a British escort taking his son to his death with just a flintlock and tomahawk, reloading the rifle as he runs, then closing a slashing with the tomahawk in a brutal and impressive demonstration.
The Time of Their Lives (1946). Lou Costello is a tinker, doomed to spend eternity trapped in a well where his body was dumped, wrongly suspected of being a traitor in league with Benedict Arnold. He and Mistress Melody try to get a message to General Washington but are killed by pursuing American soldiers, both mistaking the others for British. In the present day, they try to clear their names as traitors. Bud Abbott played two roles, the butler who wants Lou’s girl and his descendant, a psychologist who feels guilty over his ancestor’s dirty tricks on Lou. As a straight man, Bud Abbott teamed with Costello who he felt was hilarious, but needed someone to heap abuse on the funny man, but he considered this this his favorite movie because here he got the abuse. That’s despite the fact that the two were feuding at the time and had few scenes together.
Revolution (1985). Al Pacino movie. Rather than follow major Revolutionary War figures like Franklin, Washington, or Jefferson, this movie focuses on the viewpoint of the common soldier. In this case, it is New York trapper John Dobb seeking to protect his son who has been drawn into the army.
Ben and Me (1953). Stirling (“Winnie the Poo”) Holloway provided the voice in this delightful classic Disney animated cartoon for Amos, a mouse who becomes a companion and adviser to Benjamin Franklin, helping Franklin print his paper, invent bifocals, and write the Declaration of Independence, and even accompany Ben in his human friend’s tricorn hat, helping the great man remember names of those he encountered. He also unwittingly helps with Franklin’s kite experiments.
National Treasure (2004). Included because Benjamin Franklin references abound and the Declaration of Independence is central to the plot. Nicholas Cage plays Ben Gates, whose character’s name comes from Ben Franklin.
John Paul Jones (1959). Robert Stack plays Jones, the fighting sailor who battled the British on the high seas. Jones named his Bon Homme Richard in honor of Poor Richard creator Benjamin Franklin, his friend and, as the colonies’ chief representative in France, essentially the commander of the American navy in European waters. After the Revolution, Jones was hired by Catherine the Great of Russia, portrayed here by Bette Davis.
