New releases on DVD: '1776,' 'The Wire'
Produced in 1969, at a time when the traditional Broadway musical seemed all but dead, songwriter Sherman Edwards' patriotic family show 1776, which tells the story of a momentous meeting in Philadelphia that led to the signing of the Declaration of Independence, embodied all the virtues - and goofy naïveté - of old-time musicals.
Produced in 1969, at a time when the traditional Broadway musical seemed all but dead, songwriter Sherman Edwards' patriotic family show
1776
, which tells the story of a momentous meeting in Philadelphia that led to the signing of the Declaration of Independence, embodied all the virtues - and goofy naïveté - of old-time musicals.
Despite the ascendancy of the counterculture, the show did nicely, winning rave reviews and running for 1,217 performances. It earned five Tony nominations, picking up three, including best musical. The show was even revived on Broadway in 1997.
Peter Stone, who wrote the book for the musical, using actual correspondence and historical documents from the Second Continental Congress, adapted his work for the big screen in 1972. Finally restored in glorious high-definition, with help from director Peter H. Hunt, 1776: Director's Cut will be released June 2 on Blu-ray.
Featuring a brilliant cast lead by William Daniels as John Adams, Howard Da Silva as Benjamin Franklin, Ken Howard as Thomas Jefferson, and Donald Madden as John Dickinson, 1776 follows the heated debates among these founding fathers as they contemplated their inspired if dangerous scheme to form their own union. It's a joyous, fun film to share with your kids.
(www.sonypictures.com/movies/discanddigital/; $19.99; rated G)
Other titles of note
Glee: The Complete Series. Bathe yourself in the sounds and sights of a musical far more modern than 1776, if equally charming.
Fans and producers alike had hoped the show, about life in a successful high-school glee club, would continue for years after one of the show's costars, Cory Monteith, died. But Fox pulled the plug after six seasons. This 34-disc box set includes all 121 episodes. (www.foxconnect.com/; $99.98; not rated)
Survivor's Remorse: The Complete First Season. Jessie T. Usher (Level Up) delivers a compelling performance in this Starz dramedy coproduced by NBA star LeBron James.
Usher plays Cam Calloway, a basketball player who wins a multimillion-dollar contract to play for a team in Atlanta. Funny, cutting, well-written, the six-episode half-hour series shows how Calloway deals with the sometimes destructive effects of fame and wealth. It's due June 16. (www.anchorbayentertainment.com/; $24.98; not rated)
American Sniper. Bradley Cooper delivers a blistering performance in Clint Eastwood's masterpiece as a U.S. Navy SEAL sniper whose troubles seem to increase once he returns home to his family. (www.wbshop.com; $28.98 DVD; $44.95 Blu-ray/DVD Combo; rated R)
Call the Midwife: Season 4. Featuring some of Britain's best actresses, including Jessica Raine, Miranda Hart, Helen George, Bryony Hannah, and Jenny Agutter, this beautiful drama from the BBC tells the story of a group of nurse midwives working in the East End of London in the 1950s and 1960s.
This three-disc set includes all eight episodes of season four. (www.shop.bbc.com/; $39.98 DVD; $44.98 Blu-ray; not rated)
Beauty & the Beast: Season 2. The CW series takes the fabulous characters of the old fairy tale (and 1980s TV series), Beauty (Kristin Kreuk) and Beast (Jay Ryan), and plops them down into a modern sci-fi police procedural. It's great escapist fun. (www.paramount.com/movies/home-media; $49.99; not rated)
The Wire: The Complete Series Blu-ray. Produced by HBO and created by journalist-turned-producer David Simon (The Corner, Generation Kill), this extraordinary urban epic set in Baltimore has been called the greatest drama in American TV history.
Its five seasons explore the life of a city, from its drug dealers to its mayor. (www.hbo.com; $199.99; not rated).