La révolte des esclaves

Original title: Abraham Lincoln

1930
Approved
1h 36m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

Walter Huston in La révolte des esclaves (1930)

Period Drama Political Drama Biography Drama War

An episodic biography of the 16th President of the United States.An episodic biography of the 16th President of the United States.An episodic biography of the 16th President of the United States.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

5.7/10

1.8K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 4 wins total

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
This was D.W. Griffith's first sound film. La révolte des esclaves (1930) was also the first sound film about the Civil War which veterans of that war could view.

Goofs
In both the Union and Confederate parades, the musicians play trombones with forward facing bells. During the Civil War, the bells faced backwards.

Quotes
[death scene]
Ann Rutledge: I know the truth, dear. It's goodbye.
Abraham Lincoln: No, no, Ann, dear. You're not going to leave me. I won't let you!
Ann Rutledge: We must be brave, dear...
[looking up to the heavens]
Ann Rutledge: Don't take me away. Don't take me away! It's so dark and lonesome!
Abraham Lincoln: Ann, you mustn't let go.
Ann Rutledge: If they'd sing, I wouldn't be so afraid.
[a chorus of "Sweet By and By" swells up in the background]
Ann Rutledge: We will meet there, dear.

Alternate versions
Originally, this film was color-tinted in sepia-tone, with blue for night scenes. These prints also had a prologue. Current public-domain prints are in black and white, minus the prologue with a shorter running time.

Connections
Edited into General Spanky (1936)

Soundtracks
Battle Hymn of the Republic
(ca 1856) (uncredited)
Music by William Steffe
Lyrics by Julia Ward Howe (1862)
Played during the opening credits and often in the score
Sung by an offscreen chorus during a civil war scene

"The Most Romantic Figure Who Ever Lived????"

Before writing this review I saw that publicity driven line about this film. Abraham Lincoln is a lot of things, but NOBODY ever accused him of being a great romantic. All I can say there is, Huh?

Abraham Lincoln is one of two sound films made by movie pioneer, David W. Griffith. It's also something of an atonement for Griffith who was accused fostering racism with his masterpiece silent work, The Birth of a Nation.

Maybe if Abraham Lincoln had been a better film it would have succeeded in being an atonement. It certainly had one of the best interpreters of Lincoln ever in Walter Huston. The film also in many ways looks like a newsreel of the Civil War era. Our image of that era and you can see it in Ken Burns documentary comes from Matthew Brady's still photographs. In crafting this and The Birth of a Nation, Griffith was heavily influenced by Brady's still photographs.

Lincoln's prarie years were better told in Abe Lincoln in Illinois and Young Mr. Lincoln. Griffith should have stuck to the war years and made it in fact the Lincoln family story. One thing that would have done is eliminated Una Merkel as Ann Rutledge. Una Merkel had many a good role as a wisecracking dame in modern films. But in Abraham Lincoln she's just awful as Lincoln's lost love Ann Rutledge. It's a miracle she had a career after this film and a good one.