Killing Lincoln

KILLING LINCOLN may be worth seeing for anyone with an interest in the basic subject matter, but, aside from a few disputed factoids and other interesting tidbits, one is not likely to learn much or see any really new perspective here. The more interesting stuff--earlier plots to kill Lincoln, etc--is not covered in much detail, and the events leading up to the assassination are not synchronized terribly well. The combination of drama and documentary doesn't work too well either, with Tom Hanks constantly interrupting the forward motion of the film. Some of the supporting actors--e.g., whoever it was that played the young naval officer--play their roles very well; unfortunately, same cannot be said for most of the major actors here. Booth, played by Jesse Johnson, is portrayed as an annoyingly histrionic phony in love with the sound of his own voice. From what I understand, that's kind of how the real JWB was, but it would have helped if less time had been devoted to that twit and more to his co-conspirators, who we are told little or nothing about.

There's just something very contrived about the whole thing. . .

It's fascinating to show in detail what happened during the assassination. "The Conspirator" was angled more towards the Surratts. So I was looking forward to seeing this TV movie. Unfortunately it's only partially successful. The good parts are showing the shooting and deathbed quite in detail. They made Mrs Lincoln act too hysterical.

This is an uneasy blend of TV movie and documentary. Tom Hanks narration should have stuck to vocals only. It broke up the momentum showing him on screen.

The casting it hit and miss: Billy Campbell is too unlined and youthful looking for Lincoln. He is the least Lincoln looking actor in all the portrayals on screen. It's not hard to get someone to look like Lincoln (North & South, Lincoln), but here they really made a strange choice.

Jesse Johnson as Booth is quite good and his looks and get up suit the part.

Liked the blending of real photographs with the scenes.

Overall worth one watch but not that good.

Killing Lincoln educates its audience with the history of Lincoln's assassination without exaggerating or dramatizing any aspects of the tragedy. Tom Hanks narrates the film, which tended to make it a bit boring at times, but it was also necessary to inform the viewer with as much history as possible. The movie also introduced some details of the situation that I wasn't familiar with beforehand. For instance, when I think of John Wilkes Booth, I immediately associate him with Lincoln's death. However, the movie revolves around Booth and his acting career, which gave me a better idea of Booth's identity. I was also interested by the scene where Lincoln told the freed slave, "You are a free citizen; kneel to no one but God." It showed Lincoln's true character and emphasized his humility. Although historical dramas don't usually interest me, I enjoyed watching Killing Lincoln.

For over fifty years, I have been intrigued with the story of the Lincoln assassination. For the past thirty-eight years, I have lived with it on a day-to-day basis as first a volunteer and then director of the Surratt House Museum in Clinton, Maryland. During that time, I have worked with researchers, authors, journalists, and a variety of film makers from the old In Search Of series, Unsolved Mysteries, History Channel productions, and more - including The Conspirator movie directed by Robert Redford.

Through those years, I have waited patiently for someone to give an accurate, detailed account based on the facts of the Lincoln conspiracy. I finally have seen the best depiction to date with Killing Lincoln. Thank you to all the writers, directors, cast members, and production staff who finally took the time to get the story right. It's an event that came at the end of a horrible war and changed the course of American history. With skillful writing, directing, and acting - and with the excellent guiding narrative by Tom Hanks, my waiting patiently has paid off. Thanks to all.

Killing Lincoln (2013)

*** (out of 4)

Tom Hanks hosts and narrates this docu-drama about the final days in the life of Abraham Lincoln (Billy Campbell) who would be assassinated by John Wilkes Booth (Jesse Johnson) and change American history forever. Hanks starts off quickly talking about how history has shown Lincoln as a martyr but then mentions that a minute before his death he really wasn't all that popular. This approach isn't something most documentaries take but it pretty much goes away from anything new and instead just tells us the assassination story again. Last year I watched quite a few documentaries on the Civil War and Lincoln so I've become well versed in the subject. This film here is certainly worth watching but at the same time I do question if it was really necessary to do the film like this. We'll see quick re-enactment of events and then we'll flashback to Hanks who is usually sitting in a chair. He will then tell us something about the events going on (ala.. Lincoln has 12 hours to live) and then we go back to the footage. I think the film probably would have worked just as well had it been done as a straight movie without the narration. I also think it would have been great had Hanks just narrated the entire story. As it is the film is entertaining but I think at times we never really connect with the re-enactments and I think Billy Campbell really gets hosed because he never really gets to come to life as Lincoln. It seems most of Lincoln's greatness is told through the narration so the acting of Campbell really doesn't have much of a part to do. On the other hand, Johnson is simply wonderful in the role of Booth and really manages to steal the film. While the subject might be about Lincoln, the actor makes the greatest attention go to the murderer. The look of the film was quite nice even with the obvious at times CGI. History buffs are certainly going to enjoy this and I think the best thing is how is breaks down what was going on the day of the assassination.