1776 coming to blu-ray on June 2nd! (1 Viewer)

[haineshisway]

I've watched the first thirty minutes - having the film in this quality goes a long way in alleviating some of the problems I have with Mr. Hunt's direction. And I completely agree that the reprise of The Lees of Virginia, which worked perfectly onstage, does not work at ALL in the film and he was absolutely right in cutting it. I doubt I'll watch the extended cut after this viewing and I'll stick to the director's cut.

 

[Moe Dickstein]

I am rather perplexed why the "pisser" comment wasn't put in the longer version. What was the big deal excluding or covering it up?

It was decided that fans might miss the original line in the extended version for die hard fans. We found out after the run had been pressed

 

[WilliamMcK]

I like having access to the line as it was released originally... but I wish it had been reversed (with "pisser" going in the longer cut, and "privy" being in the shorter version... but I know reason dictates otherwise...).

 

[jim_falconer]

I am overwhemed by how great this Bluray looks. Great job to eveyone behind this release! I loved seeing parts of the Pioneer Laserdisc that were in B&W, now in crystal clear color!

 

[Moe Dickstein]

Yeah the reasoning is that the shorter cut is the "official" version and therefore should follow the director's intent. We would have preferred pisser be in both versions and that Privy was there in the deleted scenes for those who wanted to see it. It's not just the line but also a better performance for the whole take and it really goes a long way to setting up that these guys are regular guys not monuments which is crucial to the piece.

 

[Moe Dickstein]

They've been in color since the DVD Jim

Thanks for your great comments.

Looking forward to hearing from people as they get time to view the disc

 

[Steve...O]

I watched the first hour last night. Loved the extended Piddle Twiddle; not so much the Lee reprise (understand why it was cut). The A/V is outstanding. I loved the DVD, and this is even better and well worth the upgrade for those on the fence. The screen tests were fun to watch and one really appreciates the talents of the actors as you watch them play it solo on stage (or duo).

Will finish later this week and watch with the commentary next week.

Kudos to Sony for subtitling the commentary also. That will make it easier to follow.

 

[Rob_Ray]

They've been in color since the DVD Jim

Thanks for your great comments.

Looking forward to hearing from people as they get time to view the disc

I listened to the new commentary last night but will save the viewing to the Independence Day weekend. Peter Hunt's thoughts on the film were always interesting. A very, very minor thought: Why did he have second thoughts about Jefferson's swivel chair? That move by Ken Howard drives home his sarcasm beautifully. It's one of my favorite moments in the film, among many.


I could never bring myself to watch the DVD as I loved the laserdisc so much for so long. But this bluray's extended cut looks like it will now be my preferred version.


Piddle Twiddle and Resolve should never have been trimmed. For time? Really? You're only saving a minute and the damage to the song is so great! Better to trim a few lines of dialogue here and there if time is so important.


The Lees reprise I'm more ambivalent about as it's too theatrical for the realism of film. How does he magically reappear like that after we've seen him ride off? But I like the moment anyway, for Franklin's reaction.


I miss the lamplighter transition if only because the lamplighter remains in view both before and after the fade, so the cut sort of nags at me.


And I also miss the laserdisc's intermission break after "He Plays the Violin" if only because it emphasizes the major shift in tone that occurs as we move into the second act. But I understand why it will never return.

 

[Colin Jacobson]

That was by design, originally it was a solo track with Hunt and the actors agreed to come along just to chime in from time to time. Hunt and I prepped for a month for the track so it was hopefully worth it.

We had to explain to Bill what a commentary was and why anyone would want to listen to one. It was charming and curmudgeonly at the same time, just like him.

Thanks for the behind the scenes scoop!


It does feel like Daniels doesn't quite understand how a commentary works at the start - IIRC, his first comment is essentially "I don't remember"!


The actors say just enough to justify their presence, and as I mentioned, Hunt tells us so much that Daniels and Howard could just go "buh" and "meh" and I'd still like the commentary!

 

[Rob_Ray]

Thanks for the behind the scenes scoop!


It does feel like Daniels doesn't quite understand how a commentary works at the start - IIRC, his first comment is essentially "I don't remember"!


The actors say just enough to justify their presence, and as I mentioned, Hunt tells us so much that Daniels and Howard could just go "buh" and "meh" and I'd still like the commentary!

In Daniels' defense, he was asked a vague, useless question right off the bat: Something like "Do you remember anything about this scene?" He'd done the play countless times on the stage and as we know this wasn't the first scene that was shot, why would there be anything particularly memorable about it from an actor's standpoint? Later on, he had telling comments about working with Howard Da Silva and his penchant for upstaging. Those are things an actor remembers forty-plus years later.

 

[jim_falconer]

They've been in color since the DVD Jim

Thanks for your great comments.

Looking forward to hearing from people as they get time to view the disc

Ha, well I guess I never made it that far into the DVD. Between the missing parts of Piddle and the Lees, along with the awful audio, I ejected the disc pretty fast. This Bluray makes up for all that was so wrong with the DVD release.

 

[waltodonnell]

They didn't have it at FYE at the mall but I did find a bunch of copies at walmart yesterday morning, so thankfully I didn't have to travel far to get it. I took the day off work yesterday so I could get home and watch it right away! I watched the Director's cut first and it looked amazing! Eons better than the brown DVD. 1776 is back! I liked the new 'pisser' scene. I'm fine with it being there because it's an original line from the play and there's a purpose to it's inclusion, unlike the other two alternate takes that we talked about, Moe. I still like those original theatrical takes better


There was another change too that I noticed right after Mama Look Sharp; in previous versions, the Courier sings the last line, the frame freezes and the scene dissolves to the next scene by way of superimposing Thomson's face over the Courier's face during the transition. Well now, instead of a dissolve from the Courier's head onto Thomson's head, the scene goes white and then dissolves into a closeup of Thomson reading the declaration. Just tossing that out there in case anyone missed it. Or cares. I like it. When watching this as a little kid (3 or 4 years old), I had a misconception that the Courier actually transformed into Thomson, or that Thomson took over the Courier's body. I also thought that the guys in the congress actually became a painting at the end and that that was the whole purpose of the movie, to vote for independence and get the declaration written before they all died and turned into a portrait!! What a weird, mystical place this Philadelphia is, I thought...


Anyway, back to the bluray, I loved the new commentary, lots of great stories from all involved. I liked the additional screen tests. Man, the tests with Adams and Franklin, the actors play the scenes as if they HATE each other! haha. Is that how they played them in the original play, anyone know? They act like they're such good friends in the movie, despite Adams' bossiness. I loved the new screen test with Patrick Hines (Chase). His voice is so damn rich. Loved Bartlett's mustache, haha.


I agree with Hunt's comments on the Lees reprise. It makes Adams and Franklin out to be buffoons (Lee was already a lost cause), falling in the fountain, Adams and Franklin hugging each other in terror, etc. Nice to have it all in the extended cut but there's no question that it should have been cut originally. I agree with others that Piddle Twiddle and Resolve should never have been trimmed down to just one verse and a chorus. Seems like such a pointless song when cut down that much.


Many thanks to all involved for getting this onto bluray. It's a triumph!

 

[Moe Dickstein]

Good eye Walt. You're the first one to spot that change.

The intent was always for the dissolve to go fully to white but it never worked correctly. Now with digital tools it was possible to have it be the way it should have been.

 

[bluirv]

If you're still on the fence, Amazon has just dropped the price down to $12.88!

 

[Joel Arndt]

If you're still on the fence, Amazon has just dropped the price down to $12.88!

Thanks for the heads up! Amazon Customer Service has already confirmed they're working on my big $2.09 refund, but really it's worth what I paid originally and more. No pun intended, but the 4K restoration has been handled "beautif-lee". Great job and thanks to all involved!

 

[bryan4999]

Beautiful Blu-ray.


Just have to give a little love to the Lee's reprise. Stagey, maybe a little, but I have always found it to be a charming moment and I am thrilled it's back.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Beautiful Blu-ray.


Just have to give a little love to the Lee's reprise. Stagey, maybe a little, but I have always found it to be a charming moment and I am thrilled it's back.

Amen!

 

[Mike Frezon]

Thanks for the heads up! Amazon Customer Service has already confirmed they're working on my big $2.09 refund, but really it's worth what I paid originally and more. No pun intended, but the 4K restoration has been handled "beautif-lee". Great job and thanks to all involved!

Yup. I'm getting that refund, too. But anyone who wants it WILL have to ask.

 

[Charles Smith]

I got $5.02 back on it ..... without asking.

 

[ahollis]

I got $5.02 back on it ..... without asking.

Same here.