Alexander Hamilton

Muffie Meyer's PBS-aired American Experience entry Alexander Hamilton serves up a biPBS videoographical profile of the Founding Father perhaps best known for the manner of his death (in a duel with Aaron Burr in 1804). But as George Washington's Secretary of the Treasury, Hamilton was arguably the most influential figure in the establishment of a strong central government and firm economic footing for the fledgling nation. Combining dialogue drawn from period documents (often spoken directly to the camera by actors, including Brian F. O'Byrne as Hamilton) together with dramatic recreations, artwork, scholarly commentary, and narration by Colm Feore, the documentary does an expert job of presenting the life of this controversial but remarkable man. Beginning with his lowly origins as an orphan in the West Indies, the film covers Hamilton's self-education and emigration to America before chronicling his participation in the Revolution as Washington's closest aide, his central role in arguing for the Constitution, and his strong—some would say determinative—voice in shaping the United States into a country that would not only survive but ultimately become a great power. The film isn't simply a panegyric: Alexander Hamilton shines a critical light on its subject's naked ambition, so-called elitism (expressed in his belief in a meritocracy), and combative personality (obviously evident in his feud with Burr, but also in Hamilton's acrimonious political disagreements with Jefferson), while also reveling in the scandal surrounding his infidelity. But by presenting him warts and all, Hamilton emerges as a more human figure who has suffered relative neglect in comparison to the other sons of liberty. DVD extras include a “making-of” featurette and deleted scenes. Highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (F. Swietek)