TV Review: 'John Adams' HBO (2008)

As I said on Friday when I gave you guys the heads up on this new mini-series from HBO, I’m a huge American Revolution nut and while I haven’t studied it as much as I ought to have, it’s still the main moment in U.S. history that brings out more pride in me than any other.

That feeling of pride stems from what our fore-fathers did to bring freedom to this country and how much they sacrificed to make it happen. I cannot imagine what it must have been like to live in that time, but if anything can make it a bit more real, this series on HBO is doing it.

John Adams started on Sunday night and I was completely glued to the screen, totally enamored by the acting done by everyone on screen. Paul Giamatti was brilliant…just brilliant as Adams himself, and Laura Linney provided a strong supporting job as Adams’ wife, Abigail. Danny Huston (below) also gave a great performance as Samuel Adams, John’s cousin.

I loved the portrayal of their marriage. I think that many a wise and important man in history has had a wife who stood silently behind him, supporting him and giving him confidence to accomplish the things that made him great.

A lawyer first, Adams was trying to defend some British soldiers who were involved in the Boston Massacre. In trying to write his final argument, Mrs. Adams read his script with a critical eye, helping him narrow his focus on what was important to say about his clients, not himself.

But the first hour of the series itself was powerfully moving. It was also shocking in some scenes, like the tar-and-feathering of a British man blocking the import of tea other than his own. It was brutal as they stripped him naked, poured hot tar over his body and covered him in feathers.

I think many people believe that our fight was provoked solely by England, and while their laws and disregard for our desire for freedom led to the Revolution, we helped make it happen in places that tend to be glanced over.

The case Adams was defending is another example. Five Americans were killed by British muskets, but only after they were provoked into defending themselves. Yet we wanted nothing more than to hang them and use it as a motive for rebelling.

The second part was also shown last night and focused almost entirely on the forming of the Declaration of Independence, which was breathtaking I thought. The process by which the 13 colonies came together to finally agree to proclaim our independence from Great Britain was fascinating and difficult.

Tom Wilkinson as Benjamin Franklin was superb, but the real impressive role was David Morse as George Washington, who looks almost like he just walked off the dollar bill itself.

What I like about the first two episodes is that you don’t see everything that is happening in the war, you only see it all through John and Abigail’s eyes. So while I would have LOVED to see what was happening in Concord and Lexington, it was in a way better to see it as they did.

Especially when you get to Philadelphia and the first meetings of Congress. They couldn’t sense what was happening in Boston, and from their vantage point, an urgent declaration of independence wasn’t necessary…yet.

I loved the realism and authenticity that came through each scene. This didn’t feel like some cheesy reenactment of a period in our history. The sets, the dialog and scenes felt as if they could have actually happened.

The only downside I find is that I wish there were dates displayed for each scene, because in the first two hours you jumped around 5 years and it would have been nice to know what point in time you were watching.

If you love history and have a chance to watch this, I suggest you try to find the repeats of Sunday’s two-part premiere. This is a great mini-series, one that pulls you right into the situation and you will feel that period of our history like never before. It’s almost a show that NEEDS to be seen by people.

Rating: 9.5/10