Lincoln (2012) User Reviews

By its very making, director Steven Spielberg has written the greatest obituary for one of the greatest leaders of the modern world.

[LloydBayer · 8/10 · 30 May 2014]

The very mention of a Steven Spielberg project and everyone goes bug-eyed in excitement and curiosity; everyone from casual movie goers to mainstream critics to cinema house managers. Now reunite Spielberg with long standing producing partner Kathleen Kennedy, throw in a multi-award winning star cast lead by Daniel Day-Lewis and a story about one of the most revered Presidents in US history and you have an Academy Award nominated movie by default. Lincoln has all these fine qualities and a whole lot more. This is not just a great film for the reasons stated above, or because it is very easy to praise a film directed by Spielberg. This is also not just a masterpiece or a very important and powerful film for the sake of calling it so. From the drawing boards to its last take, Lincoln is every bit exquisitely fashioned filmmaking — an amalgamation of art, literature, politics, society, history, and most importantly, humanism.

Here's a brief re-cap to get you up to speed on the relevance of the American Civil War (1861 to 1865) as depicted in the film. The United States of America is divided as cotton rich states of the South refuse to phase out slavery. After Republican candidate Abraham Lincoln secures the Presidency, almost a dozen states in the South pull out of the 'Union' and become the Confederate States of America. As a bloody civil war rages between North and South, the film's story begins with President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation. This is the Commander and Chief of the armed forces calling for slavery to be abolished in all states by seeking a landmark constitutional amendment. For this to happen, Lincoln must procure enough votes through Congress for a stay order on making slavery illegal anywhere in America. Challenged with factions within his Republican party, Lincoln becomes his own worst enemy in a daunting personal crisis: save thousands of lives by ending the war or prolong the war in favour of ending slavery.

Running at 150 minutes, this film is a slow burner with extensive dialogues and frequent courthouse debates; but like the trudging power of a steam locomotive, Lincoln pushes forward with remarkable pace while never losing sight of its destination. Piloting this powerhouse of a film is Daniel Day-Lewis in easily his finest hour as a method actor. His Lincoln is tall and bent over with war-stressed fatigue and a shrill voice, but armed with a quiver full of wisdom and remedial anecdotes for when push comes to shove. Throughout the narrative Lincoln is torn within as he manages his duties as the President of a nation, as a father who has lost a son, and as a husband who must confide in his wife when decisions become complex. This is also when I must mention Sally Field in another fine delivery as First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln and the epitome of the phrase 'Behind every great man is a woman'. Field's Mary is a tragic character whose depiction of a bleeding heart is memorable in a scene where she confronts Lincoln as the father of their children, not a man with immense power. With strong characterisation forming the flesh and blood of the film, you can also expect riveting roles from Tommy Lee Jones and David Strathairn, besides a multitude of top actors.

This is one of the most important films of the year and perhaps even the times we live in. By its very making, Spielberg has written the greatest obituary for one of the greatest leaders of the modern world. Lincoln is to Steven Spielberg what Gandhi is to Richard Attenborough; the commonality being crucial moments in history, rather than a history lesson per se. If I have to nit-pick, I suspect there could be historical anomalies in the narrative if this film is solely considered a biopic. This is why I strongly recommend the film as a political drama rather than a componential biography. Is it safe to say that President Abraham Lincoln was a self-made man? That he was extremely intelligent despite dropping out of school? That he changed the future of an entire nation? That Barak Obama is the current President of the United States of America because Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery? If you said 'yes' to any of these questions then Lincoln is more than just an Academy Award magnet—it is a landmark film made by people reiterating that freedom is a birth right for people everywhere.

Moving and important...with a mind-blowing performance by Day-Lewis

[secondtake · 7/10 · 3 January 2013]

Lincoln (2012)

A highly polished, restrained, important movie.

That doesn't make this an exciting movie. The acting is terrific, and filming excellent (including a color saturation pulled back to give it an old look without seeming affected). It is clearly expert in the way we expect from Steven Spielberg above perhaps anyone, at least in the mainstream conventional sense.

But there are two things that make this movie a must see. One is the content. It's about one of the two or three most important things ever to happen in this country--the fight to end slavery during the Civil War. This is such powerful stuff it will make you weep. (If it doesn't, you'll have to ask why.) It's laid out as clearly and emphatically as possible while still keeping accurate.

The second thing is simply the overwhelming performance by Daniel Day-Lewis. It is so good you forget it's a performance (unlike, for example, his intensity in "There Will Be Blood" which stood out as a work of acting above the movie). Here he is so woven into the fabric of things he is indistinguishable from the historic truth, somehow. It's really the magic of the transparency of movie-making of this kind. Amazing performance.

It seems sacrilege to say this but the movie isn't perfect. Because of its material--getting the anti-slavery amendment through Congress--it involves a lot of talk, and a lot of people that you have to keep track of. I think Spielberg did this as good as it could be done, so no criticism there, but it does mean a lack of physical and even emotional drama through much of the film. I don't mean it's dull, just that it's conversational. I also found shreds of Spielberg's Frank Capra quality of making the movies--and his subjects--a little simplified. He ties up loose ends. He makes it all a fine package, very fine. Maybe too fine for what I would call high art. At times.

I think we'll have an easier time judging it in six months, or six years. Also the subject matter makes it almost unassailable, since clearly most of us are all for the passing of any anti-slavery legislation.

See this for all the reasons you have heard. Don't miss it. Maybe down a coffee before you go, but see it no matter what. As I say, it's important. It reminds you of greatness, and that's not something to miss.

UPDATE over one year later: I see that I accepted a lot of decisions by the writer and director as their prerogative, like focussing on one issue and narrowing to a short period of time. I had no bones with the scope of the movie. But in retrospect I see how the limitations of time and scope and background also create a sense of mis-information. That is, if you want a bigger picture of Lincoln, this movie is not quite right. Its aggrandizement is also not unavoidable, like the somewhat insipid (and yet moving) recital of the Gettysburg Address at the beginning by soldiers. Overall, though, I stick to my main thought--see it, and soak up what you can, without expecting perfection. Yes, see it for what it is, nothing less.

...and the Academy Award for Best Actor goes to....Daniel Day Lewis!

[Bobson10 · 8/10 · 8 February 2013]

Directed by Steven Spielberg. Starring Daniel Day Lewis, Tommy Lee Jones and Sally Field. Written by Tony Kusher and Doris Kearns Goodwin.

"I am the president of the United States of America, clothed in immense power! You will procure me those votes!"

'As the Civil War continues to rage, America's president struggles with continuing carnage on the battlefield and as he fights with many inside his own cabinet on the decision to emancipate the slaves.'

Steven Spielberg has done it again! It seems like the older he gets, the better his films are! I was very satisfied with his efforts, particularly the set designs and tone. It was a joy to watch. I was not impressed with the cinematography efforts. It was well done but nothing stood out for me. For instance, Scorsese seems to bring a new camera angle/shot/position in every one of his films. I was expecting more.

The acting was this film's strongest aspect. Daniel Day Lewis brings an historic performance to the screen except I didn't see him in this picture. I saw Abraham Lincoln. He was so driven into the character, at times it was scary. Lewis' vision of Lincoln is self confident, calm and patient. It was in my favorite scene that his patience finally wore thin on his colleagues about the negativity in the 13th amendment. The mannerisms were spot on. His efforts match my personal favored work of his in 'My Left Foot'. His best contribution to the picture was consistency. Throughout, he never faltered. His accent never trailed off and his actions were always precise. He is fully deserving of the Academy Award for Best Actor. Tommy Lee Jones and Sally Field also gave great performances. They brought character and charisma to the picture. I particularly enjoyed the Daniel Day Lewis and Sally Field combination. They compliment each other very well. My only criticism of the cast is that there were too many actors. At times, the characters were defined with a tag on the bottom of the screen. I don't enjoy being told in letters who the characters are. I want the character to show me in action who they are.

The Score is very well done in this movie. The team of Spielberg and Williams never fails. The music brings just as much emotion to the screen as the actors do. It helps bring the vision and atmosphere to life.

This film isn't what I would call a 'masterpiece' but it was a joy to watch. A must see and one of the best films of 2012.

Truly a masterful performance by Day-Lewis

[jmclane-57815 · 9/10 · 10 October 2022]

My husband and I are a little odd in that we tend to gravitate towards certain actors and follow their work, as opposed to just looking for a movie to watch. We've done that with all of Daniel Day-Lewis's films and for the most part, have never been let down.

He's at the top of his game here. This is is crowning achievement. Besides doing a silly goofy comedy where he has to be completely relaxed and making fun of himself, I think he could do anything. But having said that, that is probably what he will conquer next. You really can't throw a challenge at him that he can't field. He became not just the president of the United States, but arguably the most iconic and certainly the most caricatured of them all. But he did it in as much of an authentic way as he could have.

The Daniel Day Lewis Factor

[littlemartinarocena · 10/10 · 11 November 2012]

I remember fondly, Henry Fonda and Raymond Massey as Lincolns in "Young Mr.Lincoln" and "Abe Lincoln in Illinois" They gave remarkable performances. But, here and now in this extraordinary Steven Spielberg/Tony Kushner version, the illusion is complete. I was watching the president and not for a moment thought of the actor. That in itself is close to unique. I left the theater with the feeling I've just had an out of body experience. Everything around the central performance - and I call it a performance because I don't know what else to call it - falls into place in a miraculous way. The photography, the production design, the wardrobe made it possible to actually smell the period. Congratulations and thank you.

The political process tangles with "Honest" Abe.

[JohnDeSando · 15 November 2012]

"He contained multitudes." Walt Whitman

A story about Abraham Lincoln's 13th Amendment fight could be a snoozer in the hands of anyone else except director Steven Spielberg and actor Daniel Day-Lewis. Together they bring alive the passage of one of the nineteenth century's greatest pieces of legislation, freeing slaves for all time.

While the Civil War was coming to a close after 4 bloody years in 1865, Lincoln politicked for the amendment's passage, knowing full well that if peace were obtained, the impetus for the amendment would vanish. So politics and war are inextricably tied together, and arguably the most noble American president bartered and lied his way to passage.

Spielberg makes clear that sequestering the South's negotiating team until passage was crucial, if not impeachable. The drama as votes are bought or cajoled is an apt companion to the catastrophic war that cost over a half million lives. Less rewarding as drama is Lincoln's relationship with his wife, Mary (Sally Field), whose depression over the loss of her first child stalks here her lifetime and makes for some less than sweet moments on screen.

But this film belongs to Lincoln, who, as memorably portrayed by Day-Lewis, is a leader of strong will peppered by a sense of humor and a relentless penchant for tales: The story of George Washington's portrait in a British water closet is a hoot. Tommy Lee Jones' Thaddeus Stevens is essential Jones: gruff, blunt, ugly, and charismatic with a dollop of kindness no better exemplified than in his final scene in his bedroom.

Although this is occasionally a heavy-handed history lesson, it is my preferred way to learn. I know now what the 13th Amendment is, and I am aware in our own time of the severity of politics-- that great leaders must also be great politicians, with all the pejorative connotations our recent presidential election can conjure. Steven Spielberg brilliantly shows us that the process can be for the people and by the people and may not perish.

Abraham Lincoln deserved a better film

[dromasca · 6/10 · 3 February 2013]

'Lincoln' is one of the bigger favorites for Oscar Awards this year and will certainly be one of the heroes of the evening in Hollywood a few weeks from now. It is made by one of the greatest directors of our time, it tells a big American story and features a big American hero, it enjoys some fine acting and is very accurate in searching into history and retrieving a moment and a story that continues to impact the American social and political fabric until today. And yet, 'Lincoln' did not turn to me into a cinema experience to enjoy. Actually something interesting happens with my relation with Steven Spielberg. The film I liked most is one of his first – the very little known Duel, a minimalistic masterpiece, followed by the wonderful Close Encounters … and E.T. I enjoyed the Indiana Jones and The Jurassic Park series for what they are meant to be – great entertainment. However my personal experience with his 'serious stuff' is mixed. While Saving Private Ryan is for me the best war film ever made, and Schindler's List is one of the best in the Holocaust genre, other stuff looks sometimes pretentious, sometimes too naive. As much as he tries to prove, Spielberg cannot do films about any subject, I mean he certainly can, but not all are that good.

Most of the action in 'Lincoln' takes place during the month of January of 1865. After four years of Civil War victory is quite close for the North, but the ending would have been meaningful only if the 13th Amendment making slavery illegal was adopted, making the reason of going to war and the temporary judicial war decisions part of the Constitution. Timing is critical, as the nation is tired and aspires for peace and recovery, and without the adoption of the amendment the end of the war may mean a compromise that leaves slavery in place. Abraham Lincoln will make all possible political maneuvering in order to have the amendment pass, in a Congress where he did not have the required majority. There is an interesting dilemma here about using 'unclean' political means in order to achieve a just cause and this is one of the principal themes. There are two problems here however in my opinion. One is that the political intrigues occupy a good half if not more of the film, and what we get on the screen is a painfully long succession of bearded gentlemen under top hats arguing and bribing for the good cause. I guess some of the American audiences are more familiar with the historical characters, but even so this is a long and repetitive succession of more of the same, and even the climax scene of the voting in the House misses some of the thrill I have expected. The other problem is the political speak which is attributed to almost all characters in the film. Maybe the script writers used fragments from speeches, I do not know, but there is too much rhetoric, too many historical sentences are being said by many characters (not only by Lincoln) and even in what should have been day-to-day situations. The overall result seemed to me tiring and emphatic. It is actually the non-political secondary threads that seemed more interesting – for example the agonizing decision of the parents Lincoln not allowing their elder son to fight in the war. This dilemma would have deserved a film by itself, a smaller but maybe better one.

Much was said and written (even a cover story in TIME Magazine) about Daniel Day-Lewis's impersonation of Lincoln. He is good but far in my opinion from his own creation in 'My Left Foot' or from Joaquin Phoenix's act in 'The Master' (best acting of the year in my view). The way he is filmed does not help, too many frames are looking towards catching his silhouette or making his profile look like the pictures which represent Lincoln in his time. Again, when he is human, when his words are not taken from speeches he looks and sounds better, but this is only for part of the time. Rhetoric prevailed in the building of this role, and Spielberg's scope looks like creating as many scenes to quote, but less to link them in a fluent story as he knows to do that well. I liked much more the supporting roles of Sally Field as a Lincoln's wife, or maybe the wife of all presidents or great men who sacrifice their personal lives for the greater causes, and of Tommy Lee Jones as the radical pro-abolitionist politician Thaddeus Stevens, a man whose life was dedicated to the fight against slavery, but who knows to make the right political move at the critical moment to achieve the legal confirmation of the dream, at a tough personal price with respect to his own ideals. In a movie where so many characters including the one that gives the name of the film are no more than rhetoric symbols, these two living heroes played by the two great actors make a refreshing difference.

Perhaps the film should have been called "Abe Lincoln and the 13th Amendment".

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 22 July 2013]

When "Lincoln" began, I was very, very surprised. I had assumed the film was a traditional biography of the man, but instead it started late in the Civil War--only months before Abe Lincoln's assassination. That's because despite the title, the film really is about Lincoln and his attempts to push the 13th Amendment through the House of Representatives. Apparently, its passage was very, very difficult--even with a Congress made up exclusively of states that were not part of the Confederacy. The film shows, step-by-step, how the behind the scenes machinations (some of which were of dubious legality--such as offering bribes) led to its passage.

So is this a good film and who is the audience? Well, it's actually an exceptional film in many ways. The acting by Daniel Day-Lewis is wonderful but more wonderful is the care to historical details. The film shows, for the first time, that Lincoln was a very human man--very astute and tricky in politics, prone to depression and anger and not the saint-like guy you usually see in films. It also shows that, at least for the North, that the war was NOT about slavery--and even when the war was all but won, many still would have had no problem allowing slavery to continue. These are very important as they help give a truer picture of the man and the times. The only thing that didn't ring particularly true was the little speech Mary Todd Lincoln made late in the film. The comment about how the future will view her seems ridiculous, as people just don't talk that way. And, whether she was clinically insane or not, she did have serious problems with depression, erratic behavior and all around nastiness! I don't know why the film tried so hard to clean up her image. Still, from the standpoint of an ex-American history teacher, it was a delight. Unfortunately, I really am not sure how much the average non-history buff would view the film--as it is slow and lacks a lot of action. Still, it is a really exceptional film.

By the way, I really loved seeing Secretary Stanton freak out when Lincoln was about to tell another one of his stories! Watch the film--you'll see what I mean.

My rating: 7

[kekca · 7/10 · 30 July 2013]

Extremely important issue, extremely great victory of man against man, of mankind. A key moment in world history that is able to push the opportunity to make a movie on it in the background.

It's really hard to show the drama and significance of the event. Even the director and main character, I think, failed to do it. Same spinning all the time, the end was clear even before the start. On top of all was the emphasis on the fact that with immoral methods you can achieve moral outcomes.

My assessment of the film is so high!, because of the importance of the subject, Daniel Day-Lewis (from his previous films) and Spielberg. He, just because of his name, lately I can not find his interesting films, especially I mean War of the Worlds.

http://vihrenmitevmovies.blogspot.com/

Spielberg Delivers A Dialogue Driven Yet Riveting Biopic

[cdjh-81125 · 9/10 · 14 October 2016]

Most people will be aware that Steven Spielbergs filmography can be split into to two categories Action Adventures and Real Life Dramas and Lincoln falls into the latter categories but that's no disservice to the film as I think this is a fantastic film with amazing performances and a riveting story. When you boil it down the thing that are going to make or break this movie are the performances and they all work especially Daniel Day-Lewis who gives one of the best performances I have ever seen he embodies everything that Abraham Lincoln stood for and delivers a performance that is impossible not to get behind and it is easy to tell that the set backs in what he is trying to accomplish are taking a toll on him. Tommy Lee Jones also killed it in this movie I loved every second of his screen time he just seemed like an alternative version of Lincoln. Every thing Lincoln could be if he showed no restraint. The story of this movie is done in a very compelling way just do using in Lincolns last few months in office bringing the story into focus. James Spader was also extremely entertaining in this movie I loved his entire sub-plot of trying to get votes for the amendment and truly stole every scene he was in (except from any scene he had with Day-Lewis). Spielberg directs the film in a way to ensures that the audience is never bored and he doesn't do it in a lazy way by cutting the camera constantly he ensures that something visually interesting is always happening on screen. However my only flaw with this movie is the fact that we never truly saw with our own eyes what Lincoln was fighting for we never see slaves suffering and begging for freedom in fact most of the slaves seen in the movie are treated reasonably well. Of course I understand why one would want to end slavery I just think I would have made for some more compelling scenes in the film.

Lincoln is one of my favourite Steven Spielberg movies with amazing performance and a compelling and riveting story.

A-91%

Oscar-worthy performances all around

[Vartiainen · 7/10 · 12 February 2015]

Once again a fine proof of Steven Spielberg's love and respect for historical dramas, and of his ability to pull them off with dignity and grace. Lincoln, telling the tale of President Abraham Lincoln's attempts to dissolve slavery during the Civil War, is certainly admiring in tone, but not so much that it becomes ridiculous. It paints Lincoln as a man of higher morals, larger than life, but yet it acknowledges his humanity and the everyday side of his life. It shows us both his grandeur and insuperable ability to lead as well as his good humour and problems with his family.

Large part of that is thanks to Daniel Day-Lewis, whose Oscar was certainly well-earned. The man disappears into his role and I have no problems imagining that the actual man himself might have been something like we see here on the silver screen. He especially excels in the scenes that show the joviality of Lincoln, showcasing a man that's above all else wise and beloved. At times his performance comes across as a touch absentminded, which I'm not convinced is intentional, but it doesn't detract from the whole all that much.

The rest of the cast is equally talented, with special mention going to Tommy Lee Jones playing the part of Thaddeus Stevens. On the technical side of things the film has no flaws. Everything from costuming to cinematography works as intended, which is no surprise given the director, but the films is all about the characters and there I have absolutely no complaints.

Lincoln is a good film, borderline great even. Its skill and talent will win you over and its message is one worth hearing. It's a shame it didn't win more Oscars, because it would have deserved them.

A capsule of a great president and a director's increasing maturity

[StevePulaski · 9/10 · 17 November 2012]

Daniel Day-Lewis is something of an unsung miracle; the man will come out of nowhere, select an unlikely role, knock it out of the park, then quietly crawl back into the ground for the next three or four years before repeating the same process. He is an underrated talent most likely due to his lack of a prolific career, somewhat like director Terrence Malick. Here, Day-Lewis teams up with one of Hollywood's most prolific men, Steven Spielberg, who is coming off a stellar 2011, where he produced both Super 8 and Transformers: Dark of the Moon and directed both The Adventures of Tintin and War Horse, two acclaimed pictures.

Spielberg mans the camera in one of the most exhilarating biopics in recent memory. Lincoln is a stunning humanization and coloring-book job of American politics, shedding a light on the skepticism and grayness of the government during that time. To simplify the story, Spielberg chooses to focus on the political interworkings of our sixteenth president's cabinet rather than the Civil War itself. It shows the long, grating process of amending the United States' constitution for the thirteenth time to abolish slavery and grant African Americans equality, and how that more than one men stood at the center of the action when the process was taking place, along with how he was incorruptibly confident that ending the practice of slavery will lead to ending the war.

While titled "Lincoln," we get several other characters with a fairly surprising amount of screen time. Among them are Joseph Gordon-Levitt playing Lincoln's oldest son, Robert Todd, Tommy Lee Jones playing Thaddeus Stevens, the fiery Radical Republican leader who is strongly passionate about abolitionism, Sally Field as the president's devoted wife, Mary Todd, and David Strathairn as William Seward, the secretary of state. It could also be said that at times Abraham Lincoln is not writer Tony Kushner's (who also penned Spielberg's Munich, unseen by me) prime focus, as much as it is the backroom deals of the 1865 congress and the political battles and obstacles each member faced when their morals and ideology came forth in abolishing one of the most inhumane acts ever allowed in the United States.

Daniel Day-Lewis is mesmerizing here, never overplaying or shortchanging Lincoln in one of his most reliable roles yet. Here, he seems much more cinematic than his previous works, and seems to be smitten with Lincoln's character and persona as he embodies him for one-hundred and fifty minutes. His voice is not stereotypically deep manly, and guttural as many other works have made him out to be, but reedy and poetically satisfying, boasting not much more than historical records claim. Day-Lewis is only assisted by the wealth of invaluable talent he is surrounded by, yet some of the most powerful work of his career comes out when Lincoln is reciting stories or parables to a group of bewildered, yet fascinated individuals who recall and cherish every word the man is saying.

One requirement upon seeing Lincoln is you must commit to two and a half hours of dialog and monologues from several characters about several different topics. One challenge faced by the filmmakers that is inherently difficult to overcome is the wealth of information, history, and knowledge of the period, and we see the struggle they face at attempting to sum it all up into a structured, disciplined film. I could've seen this as an HBO ten to fifteen part miniseries, elaborating on smaller characters, extending the work of the amendment, and even showing Lincoln's impact on a still vulnerable United States. But such an action may have proved too heavy for even history buffs.

With this film, there is a lot going on in terms of subtleties and there is a plethora of weight that rests on the film's script that at times makes this a challenging picture to watch. I'm reminded of my recent adventure to see the Wachowski's Cloud Atlas, and how that film was beautiful, striking, and increasingly ambitious, but also maddening and occasionally tedious. I wouldn't so much call Lincoln maddening or tedious as I would challenging to stay in-tuned with.

But that does not mean I couldn't see thousands of people emerging pleased and delighted with the film they just saw. This is a richly detailed and unsurprisingly intellectual picture that will go down as one of the greatest cinematic endeavors to ever focus on American politics. Kushner and Spielberg have gone on to make quite possibly the best film we'll ever see about the passage of an amendment through congress and the exhausting compromises and deals that go along with the process. Finally, I must note Spielberg's top notch use of subversive elements from Lincoln's voice, to the focus of the picture from a narrative point of view, to the inevitable conclusion that still leaves us impacted and shaken.

Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, David Strathairn, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, James Spader, Hal Holbrook, Tommy Lee Jones, and Jackie Earle Haley. Directed by: Steven Spielberg.

Interesting film, but definitely not the the definitive version that someone has yet to make.

[fcline-579-762789 · 6/10 · 30 November 2012]

Story focuses on the passing of the Emancipation Proclamation and does not give the viewer a robust sense of who Lincoln was - where he came from, his difficult journey to the White House, etc. The film is very "heady" in that it deals with a continuity of ideas, dialogs, debates, etc. leading up to the passing of the proclamation. I sensed that I was watching a filmed play rather than having a cinematic experience. Very little screen time was given to any sort of visual storytelling. I felt cheated in that regard, but that being said, it was an interesting experience and seemed to have historic authenticity. I found it as entertaining as a great university lecture.

Spielberg's narrow in scope hagiography can't hold a candle to 1988 Gore Vidal TV mini-series

[Turfseer · 5/10 · 12 November 2012]

After reading approximately 200 books on the subject, Steven Spielberg's politically correct screenwriter, playwright Tony Kushner, decided it would be best to focus on the last four months of President Lincoln's presidency and the fight over the 13th Amendment, rather than covering Lincoln's entire term in office. Apparently, Spielberg concurred, concluding that a full-blown rendering of Lincoln's presidency would be unwieldy and the more narrow focus would perhaps be more dramatically effective. He could have proffered up a three and a half hour spectacle, covering many of the significant bases of Lincoln's political and personal life, beginning with the first Inauguration, with full knowledge that it's been done before quite effectively (Sam Waterston's and Mary Tyler Moore's magisterial performances in the 1988 TV movie adaptation of 'Gore Vidal's Lincoln' come to mind).

First and foremost, what's missing here is little sense of Lincoln's brilliance as a master politician. Since most of the movie focuses on the machinations in the House of Representatives, focusing on the fight over the passage of the 13th Amendment, Lincoln's input is minimal. Tommy Lee Jones, as Radical Republican, Thaddeus Stevens, steals the show with his brilliant performance as the fiery abolitionist representative, who ends up giving up his quest for equal rights for blacks in order to have slavery abolished, with the passage of the 13th Amendment. Spielberg's opus is supposed to be based on Doris Kearns Goodwin's book, 'Team of Rivals'--but where is the 'team'?

All the fascinating characters from Lincoln's cabinet are missing interacting with one another. In the Gore Vidal movie, both Seward and Secretary of the Treasury Chase's political ambitions are dissected and we actually get a sense of what their personalities are like. Here, David Strathairn as Seward, stands around with nothing much to do as Lincoln's adviser. Lincoln actually had to balance the conflicting positions and personalities of the members of his cabinet. This is effectively conveyed in both Gore Vidal's novel and TV adaptation but not at all in Spielberg's 'Lincoln'.

Wonderful peripheral figures who are an integral part of the Lincoln story are lost due to Spielberg and Kushner's onerous decision to ignore the earlier history. The 1988 biopic includes them: Kate Chase, Salmon Chases' daughter, who married the "boy governor" of Rhode Island; millionaire businessman turned General, William Sprague; Senator Stephen Douglas, Lincoln's debate rival; Billy Herndon, Lincoln's former law partner and McClellan, Lincoln's failed first general, who later opposed him in the Election of 1864.

Spielberg is more interested in the arcane: focusing on the minor figures from the House of Representatives--now lost to history. Spielberg and Kushner spend so much time on the vote in the House of Representatives, as if this is the defining moment of Lincoln's presidency. Perhaps from a modern perspective, yes! But I found it hard to believe that the bells were chiming and there were was a giant parade in pro-rebel Washington, D.C., on the day the 13th Amendment was passed. The real cheering was on April 9, 1865, when the South surrendered. The end of the war was of course the main concern of the people of the time, not necessarily the abolition of slavery.

Watching Spielberg's 'Lincoln', one can hardly realize that there was indeed a dark side to our 16th President. The suspension of Habeas Corpus and Lincoln's prosecution of political enemies without due process of law, is an aspect of the Lincoln presidency hardly addressed in Spielberg's flattering hagiography. Lincoln's view of African-Americans was decidedly less progressive than Spielberg lets on here. Even shortly before the end of the Civil War, Lincoln was still entertaining schemes of colonization for blacks in South America and Africa.

And what of Mary Todd Lincoln? Sally Field looks a lot more like Mary Todd than Mary Tyler Moore did in the 1988 mini-series, but Moore truly turns the President's wife into a fully-realized character. With Kushner's sketchy script, Field only is able to touch upon a few of the major points of Mary Todd's life in the White House. In the Gore Vidal movie, we actually get to see and FEEL the devastating effect son Willie's death had upon her, as it occurs in real time. Here (like so many of the earlier events during the Lincoln Presidency), it is only alluded to. What's more, Mary Todd's meltdowns (probably today characterized as 'bipolar') are only tangentially dealt with, as opposed to the earlier TV movie, where they are an integral part of the story.

Kushner creates a non-part for the character of Elizabeth Keckley, the African-American dressmaker turned servant to Mary Todd Lincoln. In the 1988 biopic, there's actually a relationship shown between the two women, with Keckley morphing into a confidante, in effect acting as a sounding board for Mary Todd Lincoln's actual views on slavery. In Spielberg's 'Lincoln', there's an unlikely scene where Keckley confronts Lincoln on the front porch of the White House, musing about the future fate of African Americans in the U.S.

Daniel Day Lewis is as good as Sam Waterston but unfortunately he just doesn't have a good script to work with. Probably the best scene in the film is the confrontation between Lincoln and Thaddeus Stevens in the White House pantry. But because none of the other 'team of rivals' is developed, Lincoln has hardly anyone to play off of here. Spielberg's attempt to examine Lincoln's personal life also falls flat. The melodramatic scene where he slaps son Robert, feels completely out of character!

Before you praise Spielberg's 'Lincoln' to the hilt, go out and purchase Gore Vidal's Lincoln. It's only $4.89 at deepdiscountdvd.com and Sam Waterston is simply excellent as the politician and the man, warts and all! As usual, Spielberg's production values far outshine the low budget efforts on television. Ultimately, one should expect more from the famed director instead of his narrow focus on such an iconic figure.

Sigh. Daniel does it again

[ketztx · 10/10 · 29 December 2012]

I'm prepared to admit at this point that Daniel Day Lewis has succeeded to the title of most brilliant actor of his generation--and I do not say that lightly. But when I consider what he has done here--imbued the most sacred president in our history with such aching, gorgeous, complex humanity--seemingly without conscious effort on his part--I say give it to him.

His Lincoln is at once ordinary and divine, passionate and all too earthy...and he inhabits the role so fully that not beyond the first minute do you think to yourself that you are watching an actor and not the man himself. I admit, at the first speech, I rather expected the voice to be deeper and more commanding, but that wore off instantly, and Spielberg to his credit gets every scene note-perfect. The scene where soldiers on the field were quoting back to him the Gettysburg Address was heartbreaking--The big guns, to be sure, but everyone in the theater stopped breathing. Spielberg has the mood and light fine-tuned to the point that when the characters are donning shawls against the cold--this in the white house--you shiver. I can'think of a single actor who was not up to snuff, but James Spader as a rascally vote procurer stands out. Sally Field as the troubled Mary Todd Lincoln is a sympathetic gem, and her portrayal should go a long way towards explaining and perhaps inviting history's revision of that unhappy woman. The film focuses most on the nuts and bolts of legislative and presidential processes, and while that may be boring for some,it has such a ring of authenticity and research that it had me scrambling for the history books to check on things I hadn't known. This is the most difficult of all subjects to film, a dense scholarly work translated to popular culture, but it succeeds on all counts. See it, make your children go with you. You won't regret it.

An Incredible History Lesson!

[g-bodyl · 9/10 · 2 May 2014]

For those of you who do not enjoy history or politics, I wouldn't watch this film. But for once, there is a historically accurate and rather entertaining film based on one of the greatest Presidents of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. This film will take you behind the scenes and in the mind of "Honest Abe" as he tries to pass the Thirteenth Amendment in Congress. This film is beautiful film in many regards. It has blissful cinematography, a subtle but great score by John Williams, great direction by Steven Spielberg, and just top-notch, amazing acting.

Spielberg directed a story about Abe which focused mainly in the last few months of his life. As the Civil War drags on, there is a battle between Lincoln's 13th Amendment which will end slavery and Democrats in Congress who are supporting the end of the war and not the bill.

The one thing that carries a film like this is the acting and everyone puts on an acting clinic here. Let's start with Daniel-Day Lewis, the greatest actor of our generation. The passion he brings to each project is amazing and because of Daniel, we see what kind of man Abe was. I want to say this is his best role, but every role he's done, they just been so amazing. All I can say is that he deserves his Oscar for this film. Tommy Lee Jones as Thaddeus Stevens is wonderful and another great performance. Sally Field brings emotional depth as Mary Todd Lincoln in her amazing performance. We get good performances from Joseph-Gordon Levitt, David Strathairn, Hal Holbrook, James Spader, and so on. Such a wonderful cast assembled for this film.

Overall, Lincoln is a politically-rich film, but we see the man Abe was as he was always telling stories, no matter his stress. He was a man with a sharp tongue and always had a plan. We see the fragile complexion of Mary Todd as she cares for her family. This is a passion project by Spielberg and through his direction of the film, we can tell. For those of you expecting action, don't watch this. It's very political and there are lots of a dialog, some which may seem dry. But, I was hooked on to every single word. This film brings emotion to the film and if this was not a movie, Lewis would be a perfect Lincoln. I rate this film 9/10.

Flawed but recommended

[patienttype · 18 November 2012]

I saw Lincoln yesterday and have been turning the movie over in my head. Something seemed lacking. Then I realized what that was.

The movie portrayed Congress debating over the 13th Amendment that would end slavery. The movie also portrayed only politically correct Black people. In Lincoln one only sees black people that are smartly dressed soldiers, suited gentlemen, and immaculately dressed, well-spoken and seemingly college educated women.

That historical fiction blights the movie.

The vast majority of Blacks in 1865 were not well-spoken, well-dressed, or well-educated. They had been denied access to such opportunities.

A reasonable person, in 1865, imbued with the observations of their time, might well believe that Black people were inferior in intellect or that that Black people weren't ready for the responsibilities of freedom. In Lincoln, you see these arguments aired. However, the speeches seem nonsensical when the movie deliberately declined to provide the social and cultural context that would have supported those perspectives.

There is a lot to like about Lincoln, though. Daniel Day Lewis was exceptional in the lead role. He avoided the mistake of making A. Lincoln a caricature of who Lincoln was. The characters and the script closely follow history. Few actors could have so believably delivered the role of Thaddeus Stevens but Tommy Lee Jones manages that very well.

A hype

[n-dekker31 · 6/10 · 6 January 2013]

As often happens in Hollywood, and in the rest of the world, is critics and so called movies lovers repeating what the majority is saying. Not daring to judge a movie by it's real quality. Who does must conclude that Lincoln is not worth all the Oscars it probably will win. The cast is very good and the acting also, but nobody is excelling. And Day-Lewis and the rest should, because they have all the space to show their talent. The whole movie is one slow theater play; it lacks everything that is needed for the rating it gets on IMDb and from critics. Not to speak about the missed possibility for the audience to get to know the real Lincoln. Guess there is too much nationalism in the voting from Americans. Lincoln is kinda disappointing.

I walked out of the theater wanting to go back in and see it again.

[kentuckybob · 10/10 · 30 October 2012]

It's seldom that I leave a movie knowing that I absolutely will go back to a theater to see that movie again rather than wait for distribution. As I walked out, I absolutely knew that I would be back. There are so many amazing actors in this movie that I need to go back to fully appreciate the story.

In my estimation, Spielberg's Lincoln will become the definitive movie on Abraham Lincoln. Daniel Day Lewis absolutely disappeared into this character and out gallumped Honest Abe - country lawyer, gifted orator and a man born more fully suited to the desperate needs of a nation than possibly any other man in history. This movie is not the shiny myth, but a portrait of an amazing man who inspired, cajoled and even bribed the Representatives of the People into representing ALL of the people.

If you go, and I hope that you do, go with ears ready to hear voices speaking out to us from our violent past, telling us that we can be better than we are, that some things should be done because they must be done and that we can sometimes accomplish the impossible.

Boring, tedious and pointless. Skip Day-Lewis and focus on Tommy Lee.

[lordjord96 · 6/10 · 26 January 2013]

Wow. Saw this film today, Cinema was empty. This, I expected. Being n the UK it was unlikely that this film would explode due to its 'Murican plot. When I say plot, however, I actually mean this;

"More democrats need to vote yes!", "Nearly at the vote!", "Freedom for black slaves!", "Nearly at the vote!", "Nearly at the vote!", "Nearly at the vote!", "Tommy Lee says something epic!", "Nearly at the vote!", "More democrats need to vote!", "Nearly at the vote!", "Freedom for blacks slaves!", "Tommy Lee says something epic!", "Nearly at the vote!", "More democrats need to vote!", "At the vote!"...

"The war is over, dead bodies, sadness.", "Lincoln's dead but we won't show you the assassination!"

That's it. That is the ENTIRE FILM. I have never, EVER, wanted to actually leave the cinema before. If it hadn't been so expensive and I hadn't respected Mr. Spielberg so much then I would have. I don't see why this film has so many Academy Award nominations. Sure, Day-Lewis was very, very good, but you may as well have not even included him!. Lincoln had ZERO character development; you get the same old story- telling old man until the last ten minutes, when he just becomes an old man. Tommy Lee, on the other hand, had TONNES of development. Being conflicted about whether or not he should be who he is expected to, pursuing a dream and watching it nearly fail before his very eyes, and critically being in a relationship with a black women which would have previously been shunned. The relief on his face as she reads the amendment is unforgettably intense. Day Lewis' performance was, however, forgettable and sometime quite pretentious IMO.

The cinematography was undoubtedly good. Nothing really special. It compliments the superb set and costume design brilliantly (the sets and costumes deserve a plethora of awards, definitely), but that isn't enough to save this film.

Steven Spielberg, you just keep getting weaker. It started with WOTW, and then War Horse, and now Lincoln, your demise. I hope you do take Robopocalypse up again, as sci-fi and action are your best genres.

So, overall; A boring film which I couldn't care less about. I wanted to leave, and only enjoyed the bits where Tommy Lee played out some truly hilarious and marvellously powerful lines. HE should have been the focus, not Lincoln. Tommy's character, with his 30 years of torment previously, were far more interesting than Lincoln's (the 30 years is only hinted at, not shown.) In a similar way to Prometheus, this film had its priorities totally wrong. Prometheus, however, didn't have me bored to tears. I give this film 2 ratings; 5/10 for the actual film, and 8.5/10 for Tommy Lee Jones' acting and the Set+Costume design. Overall, 6/10

great film, interesting reviews

[blanche-2 · 9/10 · 15 July 2013]

Before I write my review, I'd like to note some of reviews I read on this board.

Some (not all obviously) people reviewing this film were bored by it, and some thought Daniel Day-Lewis was okay. Just okay.

We've really gotten to the point where if one has to listen to what is considered too much dialogue (probably a page's worth in a total script would be too much), the film is slow and boring. If we don't see things blown up and crashed every ten seconds, there's just no action.

What a dull, dull tale, the story of a great President as he pushes for the passing of the 13th amendment to abolish slavery and end the Civil War. A big yawn. Not enough bloody Civil War scenes, I guess, and then we're deprived of a big ending too.

"Lincoln" is a reverent look at a historical figure, not just as a historical figure, but as a man with children and with a volatile wife, a man who played politics just as they're played today in order to get his way.

As far as Daniel Day-Lewis, let me say that not for one second did I think I was watching a performance. I was, in fact, watching Abraham Lincoln, just like when Helen Mirren played Queen Elizabeth, I was watching Queen Elizabeth. It is a rare, rare actor that can work that magic. As brilliant as Meryl Streep was in some sections of "The Iron Lady," there were other times when it was an impersonation, not the woman.

I found this a brilliant and important film, meticulous in its detail and research, right down to the ticking of Lincoln's watch. A man who cares enough to have the actual watch that belonged to Lincoln heard ticking is a caring and committed director.

Sally Field fought for this role, and she is brilliant. As Thaddeus Stevens, Tommy Lee Jones is wonderful, and the whole cast is great: James Spader, David Strathairn, Hal Holbrook, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Walton Goggins, etc. - all brilliant and well cast.

I have one criticism, brought out by another reviewer - after 2-1/2 hours, why was the assassination not depicted? This to me is one flaw, though I'm sure if I actually spoke to Spielberg, he could convince me of his reasoning.

As some side trivia, Tad Lincoln died at around age 18; Robert Lincoln lived until 1925, dying at the age of 82. He had two children; the Lincoln line died out in 1985.

A monumental film that deserves to be seen and studied.

Lincoln: A reconstruction of an amazing historical character

[gregeichelberger · 7/10 · 16 November 2012]

The difficulty in transferring an iconic, almost myth-like figure carved in granite or imprinted on currency, much like a Greek god or an Egyptian Pharoah, to a weak, vulnerable flesh-and-blood creature can be daunting indeed.

This is the task director Steven Spielberg takes upon himself in the new Touchstone/20th Century-Fox release, "Lincoln." Hollywood has tried several times to recreate some aspect of the life of the Great Emancipator, most notably in 1939 ("Young Mr. Lincoln," with Henry Fonda in the title role), 1940 ("Abe Lincoln In Illinois," with Raymond Massey), and 1974 ("Sandburg's Lincoln," with Hal Holbrook).

Incidentally, we will omit the latest incarnation, "Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter."

Now, two-time Academy Award winner Daniel Day-Lewis dons the goatee for what will surely be another Oscar-nominated performance.

Written about in contemporary reports after his martyr's death by such poets as Walt Whitman, where the flowery 19th century literation replaced the more coarse, yet realistic commentaries and biting editorial cartoons of the day, one would think Lincoln more fictional than factual.

Spielberg here walks a thin line, giving the proper amount of reverence to the character, yet allowing him to be more than human with bouts of deep melancholia, playful moments with his son, Tad (Gulliver McGrath), bitter arguments with his manic-depressive wife, Mary Todd (Sally Field, "Forrest Gump") and political strategy that makes the later presidential arm-twisting of Lyndon Baines Johnson look like a Girl Scout picnic.

The nation's 16th president, born in a log cabin, raised in Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois, a farmer, boatman, rail-splitter and traveling lawyer, was first vilified when running for the office in 1860, led the United States in her bitterest hour, was re-elected and victorious in the Civil War. Days after the surrender of the Confederate States of America, he was struck down by an assassin's bullet.

The question then, with such a wide range of life experiences to cover, where does Spielberg begin? He focuses on just four months – the last of Lincoln's life – January to April of 1865 when the South is almost crushed and Honest Abe is attempting to push through a reluctant congress the 13th Amendment to the Constitution (to outlaw slavery). The conflict is that to achieve one, he may have to cast the other out.

To appease both sides, he has to do a balancing act of amazing political skill, keeping the Republican Conservatives (led by Preston Blair, Hal Holbrook) and lame duck Democrats in line, all while dealing with the over-reaching political agenda of the Radical Republicans and reigning in their zealous anti-slavery leader, Rep. Thaddeus Stevens (Tommy Lee Jones, "No Country for Old Men") of Pennsylvania.

To achieve passage of the amendment, he promises Blair an ill-fated meeting with a delegation of CSA leaders, including vice president Alexander Stephens (Jack Earle Haley, "Little Children"), and instructs Secretary of State William Seward (David Strathairn, "Good Night and Good Luck") to utilize the sleazy, bloated W.N. Bilbo (James Spader, "The Practice," "The Office") to offer as many soon-to-be out of work Democrats whatever political patronage jobs he can give away.

The legislation is abhorrent to much of the nation and could possibly bring, if not Negro supremacy, then at least Negro equality to a country ripped apart by four years of death and destruction over the plight of those very slaves.

While this is going on, he continues to deal with Mary, who is still grieving over the death of her son, Willie, three years before; as well as his oldest boy, Robert Todd (Joseph Gordon-Levitt, "The Dark Knight Rises"), a bitter young man who wants to join the fray before it ends and he loses all chances for military glory.

Then, there is Lincoln's own personal demons which result in dark moments, nightmares and wracking guilt over being a party to the deaths of thousands of his countrymen. With such multiple story lines and situations, plus, clocking in at just under two hours and 30 minutes, one might suffer massive sensory overload with this ambitious biopic. Spielberg, however, acquits himself very well here, allowing the film to clip along at a faster pace than a story like this should.

This is aided greatly by Spielberg's deft hand and obvious love of the character and an engaging story (Tony Kushner) which is partly based on the book by presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin. Praise must also be extended to Janusz Kaminski's cinematography, the spot-on set design by Jim Erickson and Peter T. Frank, and amazing costumes by Joanna Johnston.

With these attributes, I can almost forgive the opening scene which features a black Union soldier arguing with the Chief Executive over equal pay for blacks and whites. It's a smarmy politically-correct moment which would most likely never taken place at the time and under the circumstances.

Then there are the performances. Day-Lewis will surely be nominated for his deeply nuanced title character, which infuses some of Massey, some Fonda, and even a bit of Lionel Barrymore's twang, but maintaining the lofty eloquence of a man with more than the weight of the world on his stooped, hunched shoulders.

He's quick-witted, skillfully sarcastic, yet able to charm his audiences with his often ribald stories which defuses many tense situations. A far cry from his bombastic take in "There Will Be Blood."

Fields, Strathairn, Gordon-Levitt, Holbrook, Haley, Spader and Lee Pace (as pro-slavery Democrat Fernando Wood) also acquit themselves very well, and the lessons of this film (a certain Best Picture nominee) are to be heeded, especially by a younger generation whose only acquaintance with the subject may have only been in staid, boring history classes. At least here - as factually accurate as Hollywood can be - the topic is alive and dynamic and interesting.

Abe Lincoln and Day Lewis!!

[elo-equipamentos · 9/10 · 9 April 2017]

No doubts about Abrahan Lincoln was the most important person on US's history for all times, fourteen thousand books were written about this "Special One", but this picture is about the man, the director and producer brings to us a Lincoln more closely than never and Daniel Day Lewis is a lucky guy really among a lot of American actors he was chosen to make history, an Irish man making Lincoln is unbelievable, but it's true and he was remarkable performance really and won the Oscar, of course that Spielberg tend to slide out sometimes as chat with those soldiers and planning to travel to Israel (oh my God!!) anyway who know the director can forgives him after this great picture which he done to us and to understand US's history properly !!

Political portrait that walk a strange line between hard fact and romantic sentiment

[s_campanale · 7/10 · 13 February 2013]

Abraham Lincoln is one of those mythic figures, like Gandhi, El Cid, Che Guevara, Garibaldi, Churchill, Nelson, Washington, Richard the Lionheart, Princess Diana, who have become legends of folklore, legends which usually hide decidedly grubbier and less pleasant realities. However, because of our Human need for heroes to look up to and inspire us, we usually "print the legend" rather than the truth.

Most media representations of "honest Abe" falls into this latter category, as best exemplified in the literal cartoon that was last year's "Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter" which brought things into sharper relief by playing it all in deadly earnest. Of course Lincoln lived only a couple of lifetimes at remove from us, so the truth is there, but we choose to ignore it because we want to believe in this great noble hero who "freed the black man" from the sadistic, demonic evil deformed Southerners, as simple a battle between "Good" and "Evil" as the equally misrepresented WWII, a man driven by an all-conquering desire for equality so strong it even has its own stirring accompaniment of tear jerking violins and moving horns wherever it goes! It's a pleasing fantasy, especially for rich white people who like to pat themselves on the back for how noble and good they are, even though it relegates Black people to simpletons, smiling happy children free of any adult sin or virtue, perpetual victims who need nice enlightened white folk to make their destinies for them.

I approached this film with some trepidation; sure that Spielberg the great romantic would give us more of the same and then some. However the film walks a very strange tightrope indeed. Taken from D K Godwin's dry text, it spends a lot of time looking at the political machinations and double dealing that got the 13th amendment (banning slavery) passed, and is a highly instructive lesson about how government and democracy actually works, including bribery corruption and outright lies. In turn it has been adapted by playwright Tony Kusher into what is really a filmed play with little real action and everything confined to a few room like sets where dialogue carries everything. This is all then filmed by Spielberg, who injects the admittedly very restrained production with jarring and intrusive stabs of pure schmaltz, usually whenever the evil of slavery is brought up, or one of the many prominently (and highly anachronistically) positioned Black faces steps to make some clichéd speech. These Spielbergian moments can be easily identified because whenever they appear in between the political machinations and congressional double dealings, John Williams stirring flag waving music strikes up to pull those old heartstrings! (You could almost invent a drinking game around them, one that would probably get you very drunk indeed) So really, it's two very separate movies, the Godwin/Kusher political lesson being the biggest, with the Spielberg schmaltz in support.

To its credit the film looks authentic, including the dim candle and gaslight level lighting which bathes everything in semi darkness, and most of the characters act, speak and think like people from the 1860s rather than people from 2012 in costume (Save for the aforementioned anachronistic Spielbergian romance moments) both of which are very rare in historical film.

This being a stage play in all but name, it is the actors who dominate, and here we have some of the best. Daniel Day Lewis gives us a powerful version of the mythical Lincoln we know and love (rather than the less pleasant real one) with his homespun tales and folksy charm, stirring passion and quiet determination, and he is gifted by an existing physical resemblance. Sally Field creates a powerful character our of Mary Lincoln, the only character to shine a less than positive light on her famous husband, strong willed and frustrated, all too aware of her position as the wife of a legend, a woman who pushes for the 13th largely because it will end the war and keep her son from harm. Tommy Lee Jones incarnates radical abolitionist Thaddeus Stevens, a man too extreme for his time, with the fire of the old TLJ we haven't seen in a while, the brutish, frightening thug like alpha male who can intimidate and crush those beneath him like bugs, the man with the lashing wit and grandiose gestures, and it's nice to see him back again. David Straithern, another powerful presence, plays Lincoln's fixer William Seward. His character is very similar to the one he plays in the "Bourne" series, the intelligent committed patriotic manipulator who uses downright shady and suspect methods for 'the greater good', expect here we are expected to side with him. His chief agent is played with amoral glee by an almost unrecognisable James Spader, bribing dead duck Democrats with lucrative posts for the 'yes' vote in a series of light hearted vignettes. Jason Gordon Levitt appears as Abe's eldest son Robert, determined to enlist against his father's wishes, whom even a gruesome pit full of severed limbs can't fully dissuade. Legendary Hal Holbrook lends gravitas as voice of reason Preston Blair while Jared Harris effectively incarnates another legend, General Ulysses S. Grant for a few vital scenes.

For a Spielberg film about war, there is virtually no action, and those expecting a big spectacular will leave disappointed. This is a history lesson starring famous names written by a playwright adapting a political analyst's dissertation on Congressional politics, directed by the master of romanticism and sentimentality, with a lot of unpleasant truth's airbrushed out and replaced by the legends we would like to believe are actually true in their place. It won't be for all tastes, but it is worth a look for those with a little patience.

Unbelievably awful waste of time and money

[minerva1961 · 1/10 · 24 January 2013]

Spoiler Alert - specific spoilers in here.

This is the most ridiculous movie I've watched in a long time. A wasted effort.

I understand this is not an action movie - so why start with a war scene straight out of Saving Private Ryan, play that for ten minutes and then spend the rest of the movie exploring the political machinations of Washington and trying to get around 20 votes to pass slaving reforms. Spoiler alert, it was passed. Oh and right at the start the two black soldiers were able to quote a previous Lincoln speech word perfect, thanks Mr Spielberg, completely believable.. I'm sure that really happened.

Daniel Day Lewis spends WAY too much time talking to the floor, there's absolutely and completely no passion from him, he wanders off into little stories that have little relevance to the topic and at one point even one of the senators buggers off because he can't be arsed listening to yet another boring story.

His son wants to join the Army and Lincoln does his level best to stop him, even taking him to a hospital where he witnesses cartloads of limbs being thrown into a pit but STILL the son signs up BUT Mrs Lincoln completely illogically spends a entire scene berating Lincoln for letting their son sign up - that scene was just put in there so she could show her acting chops, it lost all of it's dramatic effect because Lincoln DID try everything in his power to stop his son signing up, no wonder he spends the entire time looking down and talking to the floor, it's because he gets blamed for everything..

The amendment gets passed (hurrah!) but the reasons for each senator changing from a no to a yes isn't fully explored, it seems almost random, THEN it gets REALLY disjointed and amateurish - Lincoln gets shot, Spielberg spends A LOT of time showing Lincoln leaving the house for the last time and next scene it's some guy in the theater shouting the Presidents been shot, next scene its a doctor declaring him dead at home and then some fantasy sequence with Lincoln giving what I can only imagine is meant to be a soaring speech to a large crowd but it was the dullest speech in the whole movie and should have been moved to DVD extras.

If it's not a Lincoln bio-op then why do the shooting, it was meant to be about the 13th Amendment but why add 30 minutes extra about the assassination. This movie was a wasted opportunity, a confused mess which doesn't know what it wants to be, and just because DDL is in it and it's about abolishing slavery everyone is applauding it but even 'Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter' was better than this pile of dog pooh and that's saying something!