“Lincoln” Movie Review – No Vampires This Time

by iconmatthew1

Daniel Day-Lewis only did “Lincoln” because he wasn’t offered part in “The Expendables 2”

“Lincoln” was a film I saw with my grandma and father. I knew that it was going to be good when I walked in. The question was: how good was it really? I had heard varying things, some opinions were positive but some were fairly negative. Some historians scoffed at some historical accuracies (no historical piece is without it’s factual critics) while others criticized a lack of character development and following through with certain more supporting characters. Obviously this film isn’t perfect, and I’m not even sure if it should win it’s seemingly preordained Academy Award for Best Picture, but it’s one of the best films of the year without a doubt.

Director of Photography, Janusz Kaminski

“Lincoln” stars Daniel Day-Lewis as the titular President of the United States. Day-Lewis nails the performance and is sure to win an Oscar for it, he’s just an elite actor with few equals in peers. He has a magnetic draw and handles some of the more difficult scenes with ease, he disappears into role. Helped in part by the stellar make up and costuming. Academy Award winner Sally Field stars as Mary Todd Lincoln and does a solid job, but at times I must admit it felt more like Sally Fields playing Mary Todd than the first lady. There are too many stars in this film to name, all doing splendid work. A testament to their pedigree and director Steven Spielberg’s honed craft. It was nice to see Lee Pace (“Pushing Daisies”,”The Good Shepherd”) and Walton Goggins (“Justified”, “Django Unchained”) getting some good parts in. Tommy Lee Jones was terrific as always as was Joseph Gordon-Levitt, but the scene stealer was James Spader (“Boston Legal”, “Stargate”) as Bilbo a behind the scenes wheeler and dealer employed by Abraham Lincoln. He’s hilarious throughout the entire film and was for me one of the premiere highlights of the performances.

“Lincoln” focuses primarily on the President’s push in getting congress to pass an amendment abolishing slavery. Instead of focusing on the civil war or even the atmosphere of the country Spielberg wisely keeps it for the most part contained in the politics of it all. Showcasing how little American politics has really changed. That can be enlightening or perhaps depressing depending on your viewpoint. John Williams of course places a beautiful score into the film that mixes beautifully with the images. “Lincoln” is a great film no doubt, it at times lacks a bit in completeness and benefits from a grand historical perspective in some of it’s more “look how good these people are and look how bad these guys were” scenes. But why not take advantage of having history be on your side?

It is a near masterpiece by default, arguably a straight up masterpiece. The acting is one of the best ensembles you’ll find this year and Spielberg continues to rack up the amazing resume he’s worked so hard to create. While it might leave you with a bit of a longing for something more to be executed you will most likely be satisfied with what you get, and that’s a different perspective on how slavery ended in America. It was not the war on the battlefield it was the grimy war in the halls of congress. Final Grade: 90/100

— Matthew S. Robinson