A Few Words About A few words about...™ 1776 -- in Blu-ray (1 Viewer)

[Reed Grele]

Most of the songs and other goings on didn't "wow" me either. Until near the end of the film when you realize what was at stake. By signing their names the the Declaration of Independence, the founding fathers were also signing their death warrant as traitors to the King of England. During that sequence, when the Liberty Bell was tolling as each member signed his name, the hair on the back of my neck was standing up!

 

[compson]

And special mention should go to the 1936 film version of SHOW BOAT, probably the first great movie that was a reasonably faithful adaptation of a Broadway musical.

Thanks for mentioning this. A great, great movie filled with special moments (I get goose bumps just thinking about it), it was a wonderful discovery for me on laserdisc and has been one of my top five favorite movies ever sense. It was finally released on DVD a couple of years ago, and I'd love to see a carefully made Blu-ray version. It certainly deserves it.

 

[Matt Hough]

Yes, many of us are waiting patiently (though with a great deal of hyperactive finger tapping) for the Show Boat set Warners promised us ages ago, first on DVD and then on Blu-ray.


As for the 1936 Show Boat, I haven't bought that Warner Archive DVD since I have it twice on laserdisc: a Criterion release and then in the laserdisc box of the three Show Boat films. Yes, a DVD would be better picture quality and more convenient, but I just know the SECOND I buy that DVD, the Blu-ray will be announced.


So, I wait and watch.

 

[David Weicker]

As for the 1936 Show Boat, Yes, a DVD would be better picture quality and more convenient, but I just know the SECOND I buy that DVD, the Blu-ray will be announced..

So, you're the holdup?
Thanks a lot
[emoji28]

 

[Nick*Z]

There are plenty of stage-to-screen adaptations that have wowed us over the decades; some already mentioned herein, like The Sound of Music and The Music Man. I think we need to acknowledge the screen versions of My Fair Lady and Hello Dolly! in this conversation too; also, Zanuck's adaptation of The King and I, and Robert Wise's West Side Story. Perfection itself. Sweet Charity has never worked for me. Although I think Fosse did some of his most brilliant choreography, particularly for The Rich Man's Frug, Rhythm of Life, and There's Gotta Be Something Better Than This; great choreography alone does not a great film make. Charity is unevenly paced and frankly, awkwardly executed. Add to this Fosse employing a few gimmicks along the way (the freeze frame technique in the main titles really uncalled for; ditto for the slow mo during the title song, and the 'opening up' of I'm a Brass Band to become a travelogue of lower Manhattan) and there are some serious flaws with the production that it never overcomes, much less survives. I can admire Sweet Charity for the investment of time and energy Bob Fosse so obviously poured into it. But his vignettes never come together as one cohesive and compelling whole. It's a flop - albeit, an artistically ambitious one.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Yes, a DVD would be better picture quality and more convenient, but I just know the SECOND I buy that DVD, the Blu-ray will be announced.


So, I wait and watch.

Really, Matt?


After all the times we've taken one for the team and finally succumbed to the siren's call and ordered a DVD...prompting an immediate press release of a Blu-ray release.


C'mon, dude!

 

[Charles Smith]

Seriously.

 

[Dave B Ferris]

In some cases, there is an even more sure-fire way to spur the release of a movie: when possible, purchase an "import" (i.e., a release from Japan, France, Germany, Italy, etc.).

 

[David Weicker]

In some cases, there is an even more sure-fire way to spur the release of a movie: when possible, purchase an "import" (i.e., a release from Japan, France, Germany, Italy, etc.).

That worked with me and Sullivan's Travels, you're welcome.

 

[Charles Smith]

NEWS FLASH!


'1776' SECRETS REVEALED!


Here's a shot I never would have thought to pause on for closer examination prior to having the BD

(as a musician, this kind of thing is always of interest):


In Jefferson's room, his music stand holds --- not a piece by J.S. Bach, or any other obvious violin work, but...





(wait for it)





a page from the vocal parts to "Sit Down, John".

 

[WilliamMcK]

In some cases, there is an even more sure-fire way to spur the release of a movie: when possible, purchase an "import" (i.e., a release from Japan, France, Germany, Italy, etc.).

This one ALWAYS works for me!

 

[WilliamMcK]

So expect a Criterion announcement for PAPER MOON any day now...

 

[Dave B Ferris]

So expect a Criterion announcement for PAPER MOON any day now...

And Emperor of the North, from *somebody* (as I bought the BR from Japan).

 

[Bobster]

NEWS FLASH!


'1776' SECRETS REVEALED!


Here's a shot I never would have thought to pause on for closer examination prior to having the BD

(as a musician, this kind of thing is always of interest):


In Jefferson's room, his music stand holds --- not a piece by J.S. Bach, or any other obvious violin work, but...





(wait for it)





a page from the vocal parts to "Sit Down, John".

Good God!!! How great that you caught that!!

 

[ahollis]

And Emperor of the North, from *somebody* (as I bought the BR from Japan).

Thanks. TWILIGHT TIME announced it today for the fall.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Good God!!! How great that you caught that!!

+1. I wish Scott Atwell (Ockeghem) was around to enjoy that little nugget. He'd have loved it.

 

[Joe Lugoff]

Morton DaCosta had directed AUNTIE MAME before THE MUSIC MAN, so technically he wasn't a first-time director. But both films are impressive achievements for one who otherwise had little or no experience with the medium.

And he got Best Picture Oscar nominations for both (but not Best Director nominations).


When Variety reviewed his third movie, ISLAND OF LOVE, they said, "Morton DaCosta is now batting .666."

 

[Brian Kidd]

I have been around the HTF for long enough to have seen quite a bit about 1776 over the years. I somehow never got around to seeing it... until today. I was walking through Wal-Mart and saw it on the bottom shelf of their paltry Blu-ray section. The price was right and, being a huge fan of Musicals, I took the plunge.


I was very impressed. The music is not my favorite, however the book is so smart and passionate and Howard Da Silva's performance is so charming and funny that I found myself completely giving over to it. I didn't find the "stagebound" cinematography to be to the detriment of the film. In fact, I felt it contributed to the claustrophobic and tense nature of the subject matter.


Once again, the HTF has steered me in the right direction when it comes to a blind buy.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

I have been around the HTF for long enough to have seen quite a bit about 1776 over the years. I somehow never got around to seeing it... until today. I was walking through Wal-Mart and saw it on the bottom shelf of their paltry Blu-ray section. The price was right and, being a huge fan of Musicals, I took the plunge.


I was very impressed. The music is not my favorite, however the book is so smart and passionate and Howard Da Silva's performance is so charming and funny that I found myself completely giving over to it. I didn't find the "stagebound" cinematography to be to the detriment of the film. In fact, I felt it contributed to the claustrophobic and tense nature of the subject matter.


Once again, the HTF has steered me in the right direction when it comes to a blind buy.

Brian,


So happy to hear you enjoyed this film.


I love it when members turn me on to something I may have normally passed by.


Happens so often here.


Welcome to the club!

 

[davidmatychuk]

I have to admit that a major factor in my enjoyment of "1776" (I'm Canadian, after all, and some people might wonder why I'd like such a patriotically American musical) involves how I came to acquire the Pioneer Special Edition laserdisc in 1995. I saw a small ad in the classifieds of one of our city's dailies saying that on the coming Friday there would be a laserdisc warehouse sale at an unfamiliar address in Burnaby (close to Vancouver). And the hours of the sale were quite odd, running from noon to midnight. We drove out there that Friday night, arriving at about 9 P.M., and the sale was taking place in the alley in back of the building. It was a small warehouse space, and they had their receiving gate open for people to enter through, so there was a definite underground vibe to the whole scene. I had no idea what they might be selling, but it turned out to be Paramount laserdiscs and Pioneer Special Edition laserdiscs for the most part, with some Lumivisions and Image exclusives too. I ended up spending about $100 on 8 laserdisc titles I didn't already have, including "One Eyed Jacks", "The 3 Worlds Of Gulliver"(PSE), a terrific 1992 Paramount sampler, "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys", "Just A Gigolo", "Jesus And His Times (for Mom), "The War Of The Worlds" (CAV), and, yes, the PSE "1776", which cost me $15. The evening remains a very pleasant memory, with a mildly clandestine feel to it, almost like a heist, and I certainly got and am continuing to get my money's worth, even if my very best purchase is now available as a superior Blu-Ray all these years later.