
Lincoln
November. 09,2012 PG-13The revealing story of the 16th US President's tumultuous final months in office. In a nation divided by war and the strong winds of change, Lincoln pursues a course of action designed to end the war, unite the country and abolish slavery. With the moral courage and fierce determination to succeed, his choices during this critical moment will change the fate of generations to come.
Similar titles
You May Also Like
Reviews
Too many fans seem to be blown away
good back-story, and good acting
Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.
Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.
Lincoln may be an interesting film for some, but not for me. I didn't like it. This movie seems like it's nothing more than a vehicle for Daniel Day-Lewis' monologues, with filler lines from other characters in between. People argue, Lincoln interrupts and tells some random anecdote for five minutes straight as the camera slowly zooms in on him, and then everyone else nods after he finishes. Plus, this movie made me see Lincoln as just another egocentric politician instead of a hero. It's too long, it's too boring, and it's too bad that this film made me think less of the real Abraham Lincoln.
Having watched the movie knowing almost nothing about the man, I have emerged a fan. Daniel Day Lewis is an extraordinary actor, the likes of which comes in a generation.In the unlikely case you have never heard of Steven Spielberg or Abraham Lincoln, watch this masterpiece, because once you do, you will never forget Daniel Day-Lewis.
Firstly, I'd like to say that the film is not centered around Lincoln's life, as I expected, but more on him and his administration's role in the passing of the 13th amendment. Which doesn't necessarily make it bad! It just caught me off guard. I really did enjoy this film, even though it is not really along the lines of movies that I usually watch. Apart from great content to work from, I thought this movie did a very good job connecting the audience to the characters. It's also very difficult to build the suspense needed in a drama film when the audience already knows what happened in history, and I think the team behind this film did do that very well. I also really enjoyed how they presented the duality of the amendment at every level - for instance, how the Lincolns were divided on the passage of the bill, but presented a united front. This was mimicked in the cabinet and in the house. It shows a more nuanced view of an issue that is usually portrayed as one-sided, whole-heartedly and unitedly supported by the North. Although I sincerely hope that our government actually functions more cohesively than they are portrayed here, this film does create a good sense of the disunity among Republicans and ardent opposition by the Democrats in Congress. One critique that I would really like to focus on (and this is a more personal preference than anything) is that this movie focuses Lincoln the ideal more than Lincoln the man. With few exceptions, this film depicted Lincoln as poised, rational, and morally just at all times. There was no mention of his infamous letter to Horace Greeley in which he claimed, "If I could save the Union without freeing any slaves, I would do it." It also sort of shows Abraham Lincoln as some sort of mighty rock that stood his ground alone against the masses that called for peace at the price of abolition. While this is true to a degree, this movie doesn't really give credit to the century of foundation that abolitionists had already laid for Lincoln to stand and succeed on. Even the few scenes in which Lincoln loses control of his emotions, it is excused as reasonable and unavoidable. This is a pretty typical thing - we tend to portray Lincoln as an epitome of virtue. At the same time, I understand that in a film, character and effect is often more important than strict historical accuracy.
Rarely do I quit watching a movie, but I couldn't sit through this murky, confused saga, so perhaps my review is unfair. However, credibility was shot from the get-go, as Lincoln bids heartwarmingly paternal individual farewells to departing soldiers, whilst they proceed to recite from memory his 'Fourscore' address as they march off into the distance. It was Spielberg at his treacliest.After that, you get art direction so dark you can barely see what's going on. Why is everything in silhouette, even in daylight? It's all black on black. Finally, the script is awful. Conversations pop out of nowhere, there's no flow whatever. People tell random stories or deliver impassioned soliloquies with no lead up or character identification, so you don't know or care what they're trying to say. Lincoln gets to tell some of the most boring and inappropriate anecdotes of all, to the point where other characters leave the room. He shares deeply private philosophical thoughts with random clerks, servants, in fact he even talks to the floor, and there's condescending background music to let you know when you should be moved with admiration. If these were genuine quotes, I'd like to see the footnotes. A particularly egregious gem is when he quotes Euclid on like things self-evidently being equal to each other. This from an ancient culture completely based on slavery! It was math, Abe, not social science! The language is formal and dated, as it should be. Now, I have no problem following Shakespeare: but characters in Shakespeare speak from the story line. And finally, there's that terrible wig. Poor Tommy Lee Jones! I looked up pictures of Thaddeus Stevens and no, he did not look that dopey. I gave up on this dreary film after the Euclid story.
Top Streaming Movies









