Casting a President

Alessandra Stanley has a big problem with “John Adams”, a new historical HBO mini-series. She argues that Paul Giamatti is the wrong actor for the title part in an otherwise exceptional production, and that a “different one might have made “John Adams” great.” The problem with Stanley’s review is that she doesn’t convince me of this claim.

In paragraph seven she jokes that Giamatti looks like Shrek in “18^th century britches and wigs”, but then four paragraphs down she contradicts herself, writing that “it’s not a question of looks.” The only other example of Giamatti’s inadequacy that she provides is to say that he doesn’t make Adam’s “traits stand out distinctly enough.” She then negatively compares Giamatti to a 40 year old portrayal of Adams by William Daniels in a production of the musical “1776.” This comparison excludes anyone younger than 50, and also miss-leadingly compares the role of John Adams in two thematically different works. The rest of her piece is well written, but her failure to back her arguments with compelling evidence undermines her review.