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The Founding of America Megaset
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Product Details
| Actors: | Kelsey Grammar, Aidan Quinn, Jeff Daniels |
| Format: | Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen |
| Director: | Various |
| Release Date: | 2009-02-24 |
| Aspect Ratio: | 1.33:1 |
| Audience Rating: | NR (Not Rated) |
| Category: | DVD |
| Label/Manufacturer: | A&E HOME VIDEO |
| UPC: | 733961144574 |
Product Description
Review for Founding Fathers:The four programs from the History Channel in this set profile America's Founding Fathers, noting right at the outset they were a "mismatched group of quarrelsome aristocrats, merchants, and lawyers." The story of how these disparate characters fomented rebellion in the colonies, formed the Continental Congress, fought the Revolutionary War, and wrote the Constitution is told by noted historians, and the production is enhanced with beautifully photographed reenactments as well as intelligent use of period paintings and engravings. The story begins with Samuel Adams and John Hancock in Boston, whose protests against British taxation led to the Boston Tea Party. Moving on to the Continental Congress meeting in Philadelphia, the brilliant delegates from the South, particularly George Washington and Thomas Jefferson appear on the scene, and the story is told of how an improbable cohesion between the colonies began. Other main characters, including Benjamin Franklin and John Adams, appear in turn, and each of the major participants is portrayed in a biographical profile. How these men all came to act together, despite the stark differences in their backgrounds and temperaments, becomes the main thread of the story. They were all quite human, as the historians who appear in interviews remind us. Some of them drank too much, some had illegitimate children, some owned slaves, and some could hardly get along with anyone. Yet these men with complicated private lives worked together and performed heroically. This is an intelligently rendered and captivating look at the men who formed the American nation. --Robert J. McNamara
Review for Founding Brothers:
The political wrangles of a fledgling country may sound dull compared to the drama of a war, but the early history of the United States only gets more fascinating as the Revolutionary War is left behind. Founding Brothers, a documentary from the History Channel, examines the struggle to not only establish democracy, but to give it the economic strength and governmental structure that will allow it to survive and thrive. George Washington grappled not only with politics, but with questions of style and propriety--how should a president, as opposed to a king, behave? Understanding the conflicts between Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson will illuminate ideas that have shaped the government of the U.S. ever since. Founding Brothers provides a wealth of portraits and illustrations from the time, as well as discreet dramatizations, that bring the rise of party politics to life, humanizing these historical figures with tales of the scandals and squabbles they faced as well as their political achievements. An excellent introduction to the roots of the American experiment, and a bracing illustration of what Jefferson meant when he said of the presidency, "No man will bring out of that office the reputation which carried him into it." --Bret Fetzer
Review for Washington the Warrior:
He was "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen," and Washington the Warrior puts the emphasis on the beginning of that equation. The military career of George Washington is the well-chosen focus of this History Channel documentary, which will probably surprise the casual history buff. It gives the fascinating story of Washington's youthful ride into the Ohio territory to deliver a message to the French, a defining moment (and one that made Washington a celebrity after his diary of the journey was published). The film strongly suggests that the young Washington was in over his head in the early battles that followed, and that his career might well have ended after he led a British debacle at Fort Necessity, a stumble at the start of the French and Indian War. Glossing lightly over GW's years as a gentleman farmer, the doc picks up again with Washington's takeover of the Revolutionary army (he showed up at the Second Continental Congress dressed in his military uniform, leaving little question about his intentions) and the tenacious years that followed. The approach here is basically an illustrated lecture, with Stacy Keach intoning the story of Washington, and experts (mostly sounding enthralled with Washington's life) providing context. Meanwhile, armies of reenactors march through their paces in pretend battles. Jackson Bolt plays the mature Washington, with Shea Patrick as the younger version--and how refreshing to see the carved-in-marble George Washington as a guy in his twenties. CGI effects are a big boost here, and the location work is often flavorful. The re-creations have the flat, unconvincing quality of many such things--nobody ever gets their uniforms dirty--but the life being described is an important one, and the approach is foursquare. --Robert Horton
Review for Benedict Arnold: A Question of Honor:
The most sullied figure of the American Revolution receives partial redemption in Benedict Arnold: A Question of Honor. Produced for the A&E network, this factual drama reveals the lesser-known circumstances of Arnold's dishonor, beginning in 1777 and chronicling his fall from greatness. The conquering hero of Saratoga and other victories of the Revolution finds himself in an impossible predicament, his allegiance torn between his British loyalist wife (Jane Brennan) and his paternally devoted commander, George Washington (Kelsey Grammer), as his Colonial detractors cast him into a tragic no-win scenario. Authentically detailed and blessed by playwright William Mastrosimone's poetic period dialogue, Benedict Arnold successfully explores the personal and political facets of a great soldier's downfall. Aidan Quinn's expressive melancholy perfectly suits his title role, and Grammer transcends Frasier, lending appropriate gravitas--and some physical resemblance--to his portrayal of America's future president. Like A&E's earlier film The Crossing, this is compelling historical drama, entertaining, intelligent, and emotionally complex. --Jeff Shannon Review for The Crossing: Every American knows that George Washington crossed the icy Delaware River in the War of Independence, if only from Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze's famous 1851 painting. The made-for-cable-TV historical drama The Crossing, scripted by Howard Fast from his novel, corrects at least one piece of historical invention--Washington did not stand and pose for the occasion of Leutze's portrait--but, more importantly, it frames the event in the real-life drama that made it a decisive moment of American history. Jeff Daniels makes a fine General George Washington, the quiet, dignified, and increasingly desperate leader of the volunteer Continental Army. By December 1776, six months after the Declaration of Independence was signed, the tired and hungry army had retreated to the far banks of the Delaware River, a mere fraction of the original 20,000-strong force. Knowing that defeat means the end of the revolution, Washington takes the offensive in a dangerous surprise attack that turns the tide of the war. Like the sprawling Civil War epic Gettysburg, The Crossing takes one incident of the Revolutionary War and digs into the whys and wherefores that make it vital history. It lacks scope and spectacle--major battles appear more like modest skirmishes--and lapses into patriotic fervor at times, but it brims with rich historical detail and comes alive with the stories of officers, soldiers, and a very human George Washington. --Sean Axmaker
Product Features
Customer Reviews
Rated
on 2010-03-31This is a worthwhile set to purchase with excellent info... some are done in a documentary style while others are actual films about the lives of these famous historical figures and events. A lot of information you would not learn in school.
However, after watching a few of the DVD's, you start to notice that the info has become repetitive. You start seeing scenes from previous DVD's and the same info recut over and over again. On many, 3/4ths of the info is repeated and recut from prior DVD's adding just a few extra minutes of new info to each section. Some of it gets so repetitious that you begin to question if you are watching the same DVD as before. Thus, the editing jobs are terrible and not sequentially done. So the same things keep getting redone by recutting the same footage. At least 4 DVD's are wasted duplication... but if you don't watch them, then you miss the 10% of new info included. I marked 4 stars because of this deliberate repetition of recutting the same scenes to create extra episodes. I guess they think no one would notice?
There are also contradictions between the DVD's. One says Washington was 6'4" while another says he's 6'1" while yet another says he's 6'3.5" so it is evident that no one person was responsible for info continuity. One DVD on Washington was obviously written for the ego's of the authors of books on Washington who are doing the interviews and it leaves out his entire childhood.
However, the DVD on Benedict Arnold is exceptional. He is repeatedly mentioned throughout the DVD's, but one DVD is a movie of his life. I learned a lot of new things. I had been programmed to react to his name like everyone else... but I learned what caused him to do what he did and felt quite sorry for him after seeing the facts... which I did verify from other sources after seeing it on the DVD's. After watching how he was continuously crapped on after each heroic act he achieved in practically winning the war for our country... and how they refused to pay him; refused to reimburse him; a worthless General Gage stole his credit for the heroic battles he won: and how another corrupt leader in Philadelphia destroyed his reputation in the press because Arnold prevented his street executions... then this leader blackmailed Washington into backing him against Arnold by threatening to cut off all supplies to the military... then Arnold nearly losing his home, the death of his wife and the loss of his entire business because he had not been paid... while his promotions recommended by Washington (who adored him)... went ignored because Arnold did not have the bloodlines and had been indentured by his mother as a child... so he was constantly being spat on by the Congress for whom he was fighting these battles... Arnold was not one of the "in crowd" and was treated like rubbish no matter what great things he had done. You can see why this man did what he did. It was very sad. Worth watching. I had no idea he had been treated so poorly. It was a disgrace. If he had been treated with the respect and recognition he had earned, he would have never done what he did.
The DVD on Ben Franklin was also quite well done. There is quite a bit of info on him. I had no idea that he really lived all of his time in London and in France and very little in the US. Quite the womanizer too... but his quick wit made him quite popular.
The Crossing was another film in the set which was well done.
Again, the set is quite educational even with its flaws and repetition. It shows the good and bad of the building of a country and how each person was involved. The info on Samuel & John Adams and Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton was also quite interesting to watch. How many people know that Former Presidents John Adams & Thomas Jefferson... although they did not speak for about 10 years after an ugly mudslinging presidential campaign... later became good friends in correspondence after their wives died with more than 150 letters sharing their love of literature... and both men ended up dying on the same date... which was the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence... July 4, 1826... John Adam's last words were, "Jefferson survives" but he did not know, Jefferson had died just a few hours earlier. An amazing coincidence. A shame our schools never teach these things.
Or that George Washington died from bad doctoring who after coming down with a cold, died because his doctors had "bled" over 5 pints of blood from him.
Just a personal observation which genealogists already know... but most people had been led to believe we have longer lives now and lifespans were shorter in the past. Just the opposite. Most of these famous men lived into their 80's and 90's (Franklin, Jefferson, Adam's, etc). A few in their 60's but the majority much older unless by war or other means. While people today are now dying in their 50's and early 60's by the droves. What they tell people and what is fact are two different things. Just read the obits and then compare the general ages on the records of the past to see for yourselves.
All in all... I definitely recommend this set of DVD's for the historic value and quality of presentation. The school systems don't teach these things so it is about the only venue for your family to learn about these events unless they like to read. The DVD's are enjoyable to watch and the actors performed their roles excellently. Even with the duplicated info and bad editing... the DVD's are still quality watching.
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