Lincoln

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.

I approached this film with caution and did so for several reasons. First and foremost, this is Oscars season and this type of film is just what one expects to come out and be showered with Oscar buzz – and quite often these films are found to be lacking once they are out of this period and on their own. The second reason was related and it was that I didn't for a second think that this film would be able to go for more than two minutes without the heroic music coming up, a soft focus being slapped on the lens and someone giving a great speech about the morality of everything while the camera cuts to those around looking teary eyed and yet full of admiration. In other words I worried that this would simply be a more expensive version of The West Wing season 1.

Although the film does rather fall into these traps occasionally, it is by no means seriously flawed since the majority of the film is patience and very well delivered. We focus on the final few years of Lincoln's life, specifically the period towards the end of the war where slavery was abolished by Constitutional amendment. As such the film is about political wrangling and the determination to stay the course with the goal even though it would be difficult and smart politics suggested to not risk the bigger prize (peace) at the expense of an aspiration. The film shows this very well and it manages to be patient without being slow – which is quite the achievement considering that the film is essentially men in rooms talking. The politicking was well delivered so that it wasn't dull but wasn't falsely sped up. The sentimentality is kept to a surprisingly low. It is still there of course and the camera frequently looks for a heroic frame and the music often reminds us the grandeur of what we are seeing, but it doesn't overdo it too much and certainly nowhere near the levels I feared.

Day Lewis is perhaps a given for the Oscar. His Lincoln is certainly a spot on creation – he comes over as heroic and steadfast without being mythicalised by his own performance. He really gives an impression of the man's spirit throughout the film. The supporting cast is so deep in names and faces that it is hard to know where to start; being honest, at times I did find it a little distracting as a parade came across the screen – seemingly all from TV shows I watch or films I had seen, I suspect I could be quite far down the cast list before I found someone I couldn't place. Aside from this distracting a little, it does mean the cast is deep in talent and everyone does well. Tommy Lee Jones in particular adds passion and color to all his scenes and the film benefits from his performance. Field is perhaps not as good – although in fairness I didn't think the personal side to the story worked as well as the rest – and since this is her parts, maybe that is why I didn't like her performance as much. Spielberg's direction is very well paced; shots are very well picked and the camera is very patient in its movement.

Lincoln didn't blow me away but it did quietly impress me. Part of the reason for this is that the film doesn't go all out for emotion or history or sentimentality, it simply lets it happen in the main and manages to keep these traps to a comparative minimum that really helps the film. It is long but never boring, respectful but never overly so.

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.

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%

"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.