Fourth of July Movies
Topic: Art and Poetry

The two best patriotic films, two films I'll pull out the DVDs for tomorrow to watch (after the Tour de France) are Yankee Doodle Dandy starring James Cagney and 1776 starring Howard Da Silva, Ken Howard and William Daniels. Both represent what is good and idealistic about America.

Yankee Doodle Dandy is a biography of George M. Cohan. Starring James Cagney, the movie shows Mr. Cohan as a vaudeville performer born into show business as part of the Four Cohans. He rises up, in the true American way fights his way up and and brings his family up the ladder of success with him. He writes many successful plays and is remembered to this day for the songs Over There, Yankee Doodle, Me and My Gal and Give My Regards To Broadway. When you say 'John Q. Public' that's a phrase he coined. It's a great movie, an emotionally satisfying movie and after watching it you'll choke right up when Cagney says for the last time, "My mother thanks you, my father thanks you, my sister thanks you, and, I assure you, I thank you" A genuine flag waver for you.

The other movie. 1776, is a musical made near the time of the 200th birthday of the United States. It tells the story of the creation of the Declaration of Independence during the time of the Continental Congress. With humor, warmth and song it follows the struggles of John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin as they manage and maneuver their way through stubborn southerners, loyalists and a New York delegations that abstains 'courteously' until the very end. The songs are smart, witty and honest with songs even dealing with the slave trade (Sugar to Rum to Slaves) and with the song of a dying soldier who hopes his mother finds his body in the field. This movie has everything you would want in a movie. And if at the end when the signers of the Declaration of Independence sign to the tolling of the bell, if you aren't having goose bumps well then you might want to check your pulse.

Those are the best movies for the Fourth of July and if you haven't seen these movies then you need to put them on your list.