John Adams: The Complete Series [DVD] [2008]

I have of late caught up with some of the television series (HBO) based on figures that shaped and brought about the Independance of the United States of America - hard fought battles, some lost, and those ultimitely won, not just on the battlefields but amongst those that believed it was time to be completely free from British rule, and those against for fear of resprisals and futility of going against such a powerful nation's military might that might easily crush the weaker, less equipped rebellious and far fewer of them, who were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice in the name of freedom. But such a hard fought battle did eventually convince the British - including its reluctant King, George III - that it was now futility - to continue a war in its own colony that was losing all its assetts both in its unreasonable high taxation and the gradual depletion of its military might. All this is well covered in another outstanding series "George Washington" (also HBO) its leader that helped win decisively America's freedom, by sheer force of determination and undying dedication to its cause. John Adams on the other hand was amongst quite a few of those - including Thomas Jefferson - who fought their struggles for Independence, by force of debate, their individual beliefs, and voting for the United States Independence - in a modest senate setting - by a unanimous agreement of all 13 States - on that historic day of the 4th of July, 1776 - without fanfare - for its war with the British was to continue for some years to come. John Adams was however a man that stood somewhat alone, some even accusing him of vanity - but his life - most importantly with his wife Abigail - their children - and their undying loyalty to each other, makes it an essential series that focuses on Adams unflinching, un-compromising principals, despite Adams too long seperation from family - while he debated and jeopardised important dimplomatic alliances, in the war against the British. This determination, with General Washingtons victory on the battlefields - the making of America's first President, continues the account of John Adams life, an emotional and always impressive roller coaster ride of events unmatched as I have ever seen in an historically factual television mini-series, with its magnificent realistic settings, its enactment by a no finer cast of players and that which won both the Global and Emmy Award for best series (2008) directed by Britain's Tom Hooper, and best actor Paul Giamatti as Adams and best actress Laura Linney as his wife Abigail, for their mesmerising performances throughout.

"John Adams" is a quite remarkable description of the Unites States' creation. This mini-serie describes the evolution of one of the main figures of the American revolution. Adams went from the defense of British soldiers in the 1770 Boston Massacre, to the participation of Massachusetts in the 1775 Continental Congress, and the diplomatic representation of the insurgents in Louis XVI's court. After that he became Georges Washington's vice-president, and finally the second American president (not to be confused with his son, who became later the fourth one). His wife, Abigail, was also, much before Eleanor Roosevelt, one exceptional political wife. Many things support this ambitious endeavor. The settings and costumes are extremely brilliant (with extremely smart combinations of digital effects and mattes). The photography chosen by Director Tom Hooper is most efficient and contributes a lot to the feeling of immediacy. Some country landscapes are absolutely delicious - a pity there is no Blu-Ray, This is not by the way a story of military battles (like Emmerich's "The patriot" or Hudson's "Revolution"). It covers rather political battles (though the consequences of the previous ones are most clearly exposed). Actors are excellent. Giamatti is quite good, but is overpowered by David Morse (most subtle as Washington), Laura Linney (crushing as Abigail), Tom Wilkinson (an amazing Ben Franklin) and Steven Dillane (an outstanding Jefferson). There are a lot of memorable dialogues (see for example the shocked Adams in the debauched French court, or its hilarious official visit to the British king). All this builds on an excellent script that supports 500 minutes of excellent television (quite above nearly anything one could find presently in cinema).

While watching the excellent series, Sleepy Hollow, John Adams and his wife, Abigail, were mentioned many times with affection by Ichabod Crane. I had never heard of the man and certainly didn’t know just how big a part he played as a “founding father “ of the United States. I went searching, on Amazon of course, and found this mini series. The series starts with Adams, as an Attorney, defending British soldiers accused of murdering colonial citizens, who were rioting. The revolution wasn’t even started at this point but you could see where this was heading. His wife, while a strong individual herself, begged and pleaded with him not to defend the British. His strong principles, especially in relation to the law and the right of any person to a defence, prevailed against the odds and the British soldiers were acquitted. And so begins his story on the road to Independence. This is a biopic type series and follows Adams all the way to the Presidency (there wasn’t a White House at this point but a colonial mansion for the President). The production is well done and everyone plays their role with aplomb. If you are expecting action sequences of the revolution , there aren’t any. This series follows a great man, attorney, politician, statesman who fights for what he believes in. He earns the respect of all those he encounters through his dealings both home and abroad. He is a stubborn man but a proud one and his wife was truly his rock and sometimes inspiration to helping him achieve what he achieved. A truly remarkable person and one who should be better known to the world. A great watch. Enjoy

There are sadly very few films about this fascinating period in American history but this is a real gem of a mini series and utterly absorbing from beginning to end. It covers Adams's life from when he was a lawyer in Boston with the unenviable task of defending a group of hated British soldiers who had fired on a crowd to the end of his life including his role in drawing up the American consitution, the war of independence and his term as vice president to the first president, George Washington, and his term as the second president. Paul Giamatti is superb as John Adams, the second President of the United States and Laura Linney is wonderful as the faithful and ever patient Mrs Adams. David Morse as George Washington and Stephen Dillane as Thomas Jefferson are also outstanding. The scenes in the courtroom at the beginning of the film, the telling of the complicated on/off relationship between Adams and Jefferson and the scenes where a group of delegates from the states meet to hammer out the constitution are outstandingly staged. My only quarrel is that some scenes are filmed on a slant as if one of the legs on the camera tripod had collapsed. It is distracting and irritating to watch. A small point but the film would have been better without this curious technique.

As the American war of independence and the subsequent early years of the United States were not covered in the British history curriculum, we had no real grounding in the American perspective of those early years. We do, however, enjoy a good historical drama and, given the quality of `The Wire' we fancied giving another of HBO's offerings a chance. We were not disappointed. The attention to detail was incredible and the narrative was apparently drawn from the extensive contemporary record and the wealth of correspondence between John and Abigail Adams. The superb cast were totally immersed in their characters and portrayed them with depth and sympathy; rotten teeth, warts and all. The performances of Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney (who we'd recently seen in a re-watching of `Love Actually') as John and Abigail Adams were particularly outstanding. Well done HBO. A possibly risky investment in a lavish but honest re-telling of the formative years of the Union really paid off. We're now looking forward to HBO's impending release of `The Pacific'.

HBO Mini Series covering the period of 1770-1810 and the life in that period of the 2nd President of the United States John Adams(Paul Giamatti)as he rises from Boston lawyer to one of the chief orchestrators of America's independence from Britain and through many years in diplomacy in Europe working alongside and tangling with amongst others Benjamin Franklin(Tom Wilkinson) and Thomas Jefferson(the always superb Stephen Dillane) he eventually returns to America to become it's second elder statesman. On the plus side both Giamatti and Laura Linney as his faithful and opinionated wife Abigail are peerless and episodes 1(Boston Tea Party and Adams' defence of British soldiers accused of indiscriminate killings)and 2(the waging of the physical and political will to separate from Britain)are excellent television right out of the top draw with Tom Hooper directing Kirk Ellis adaptation of David McCullough's best seller hitting all the right notes.The feeling of history in the making is palpable. BUT As soon as episode 3 jumps forward to Adams' time in Europe,the whole enterprise is derailed.While we get a strong sense of a family torn apart by duty and ambition,Adams adventures abroad are bewilderingly elusive and frustrating.Danny Huston as Samuel Adams disappears from the story like several others without explanation.As to Adams time in Europe and it's historical accuracy,I do not really care as we are given so little to go on.The grandeur and struggles of Episodes 1 and 2 are replaced by a character who spends so much time away from an America he helped to forge that that his peripheral standing only contributes to our own alienation from history,engendering a somewhat "pokey feeling"to the proceedings. When he finally returns to the US,his ascent to the highest office is so downplayed as to be almost irrelevant,the time gaps between episodes rob us of any real continuity in the story and what becomes fascinating in an entirely perverse way is the decline in the state of Adams dental hygiene.The stuff with the "White House"is also strange and of little consequence.The stuff of politics - idealism,betrayal and convictions are so dissipated by the end that I felt that I had learnt very little from a tumultous period in world history when people really did seem to have a very personal say in their destinies. John Adams is a beguiling and exciting piece of television at it's best.Unfortunately that sense only extends to the first two episodes.The rest is ham fisted and not even superb actors like Giamatti and Linney can save it. Unbelievably over-praised .

Occasionally, a production comes along which is just superb on so many levels: the casting, acting, production and attention to detail - this is one of those! Paul Giamatti excels as the single-minded, determined, stubborn, irascible Adams and Laura Linney is magnificent as his highly supportive, long-suffering wife and friend, Abigail; together, with a strong supporting cast including Tom Wilkinson, Stephen Dillane and David Morse; to name but a few and along with the fascinating subject matter, makes for compulsive quality viewing. I'm really pleased this has been made, as John Adams seems to have been over-shadowed by Washington, Franklin and Jefferson; but in making this mini-series, it has brought to light this historical figure, for those of us who were not so aware of his contribution to this part of American History.

This was a good series but didn’t think a much about the second president !

An enriching thrilling series on the beginning of the US. A splendid cast, masterfully-crafted dialogues. A truly enlightened series. :) :) Paul Giamatti leads a compelling chronicle narrating the birth of a great nation imbued with ideals.

Super pleased with this miniseries. Must like history and politics to thoroughly enjoy, which I did.

a chi interessi la rivoluzione americana ed i suoi protagonisti, questa serie non può mancare.

Ich fand diese Serie richtig gut. Insbesondere wenn man sich für den amerikanischen Unabhängigkeitskrieg intereressiert (wie ich das tue) ist das lehrreich. (Obwohl Kampf darin gar nicht vorkommt, es geht um das zivile und politische Leben.) Herausragend sind die Schauspieler. Sowohl der Hauptdarsteller als auch seine Frau sind selten gesehen gute Schauspieler. Sie spielen ein wenig so als ob sie auf einer Theaterbühne stünden. Das kommt gut an - wirkt erfrischend anders und hochwertiger als man es bei heutigen Serien gewohnt ist. Der Film ist leider in englischer Sprache, aber obwohl ich nur relativ schlecht Englisch kann, habe ich es Dank der einblendbaren englischen Untertiteln gut verstanden. Mir ist auch aufgefallen, daß eine schöne, literalisch wertvolle Wortwahl verwendet wird. Dieser Film ist auch als Englischlektion gut zu gebrauchen, sogar für Fortgeschrittene. Die Story an sich ist auch durchweg spannend. Das Ende ist erschütternd traurig geraten. Die Bildqualität ist gut. Ich habe es in BluRay Player und auf HD TV gesehen und stellen weise habe ich mich über die Bildqualität eines nicht-BlueRay Filmes (positiv) gewundert. Insbesondere die Aussenszenen in Parks und auf dem Lande sehen beeindruckend aus. Schöne, natürliche Farben.

This series gives a n insight into the personalities of America's founding fathers rarely seen on TV. Hopefully there will be a desire to journey into these stories.