Taking Liberty

Why on earth would anyone make a movie about the American Revolution and get the simplest facts wrong? This purports to be happening in 1778, with Benjamin Franklin aiding the heroine and her rebel pals. The fact that Franklin was in France then is dismissed with his airy explanation: "oh, I'm there some of the time, but there's so much work to do here . . . " He was a public figure and a famous man; he could not have slipped casually away from France for months on end without it being noticed. And for some reason he has his secret hideout/laboratory in New York, not in Philadelphia--why?

When she's looking for "Poor Richard," she shows no recognition of the name, although it was about as famous as Franklin himself. His almanack and the sayings from it were very well known.

What a silly film. About the most I can say for it is that it's pretty--nice scenery, some handsome horses, some lovely if not particularly historically accurate clothing. But it's much more a fantasy than a history.