Lincoln (2012)
Lincoln (2012)
Director Steven Spielberg once again brings his sense of style to his long resume of movie experience. This film is certainly worthy of going to see in the theater; for its character interaction, which is where this film flexes its muscles.
However, to appease the masses, there might be a limited amount of action for the modern day movie going arcade style audience. There is a sense of eagerness to the former commander of the €free€ world. Daniel Day-Lewis (Last of the Mohicans) physically resembles honest Abe (Abraham Lincoln) and I think he did well overall with his portrayal often staggering through the scenes as a late night stand up comic.
It was justified to see such a equally gifted talent with Sally Field as she portrays Mary Todd Lincoln. Sally is certainly a gifted actress and brings moments of tears to some of her scenes meanwhile demonstrating a real sense of hardship being a woman from yesteryear.
This film seems to find its way with from the storytelling part of things but it seemed to me to lack something. I kept waiting to see Indiana Jones run from a giant boulder.
In all fairness, this is a piece of American history and would make a good collection to other films recently released about the16th President of the United States, who served from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. I did like how this part of Abraham's life was portrayed in this film done in a tasteful yet graceful way in the form of sequence.
Abraham Lincoln had unusually long arms, feet, had long legs, a long thin face and neck. Before his death, it was presumed that he was dying from some form of cancer, this would help explain his physical appearance.
William Seward is played by veteran actor David Strathairn who I always remember in the 1992 film Sneakers directed by Phil Alden Robinson. Irwin 'Whistler' Emery was David's character in that film, and he was blind an unforgettable performance.
More talents folks appear in this film including Joseph Gordon-Levitt (3rd Rock from the Sun television series) who plays Robert Lincoln. It seems Joseph has been showing up in more and more different marquee films lately. From the latest Batman film The Dark Knight Rises (2012) to the upcoming Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2013).
The cast is loaded with more talent including: James Spader who appears in this film as W.N. Bilbo, Hal Holbrook as Preston Blair, Tommy Lee Jones as Thaddeus Stevens, John Hawkes as Robert Latham, Jared Harris as Ulysses S. Grant, and finally Jackie Earle Haley as Alexander Stephens. There are others, but I will stop here.
Sometimes having a cast of familiar faces this large can take away from a film such as this, but I believe nothing was lost with their performances, in fact, I think it actually added another dimension to this feature.
The storyline follows the American Civil War until its end and along the way we see how it affected the country and help shape things for many different people especially the slavery being ended in the United States. Give this film a chance at least when it comes out on DVD.
Director Steven Spielberg once again brings his sense of style to his long resume of movie experience. This film is certainly worthy of going to see in the theater; for its character interaction, which is where this film flexes its muscles.
However, to appease the masses, there might be a limited amount of action for the modern day movie going arcade style audience. There is a sense of eagerness to the former commander of the €free€ world. Daniel Day-Lewis (Last of the Mohicans) physically resembles honest Abe (Abraham Lincoln) and I think he did well overall with his portrayal often staggering through the scenes as a late night stand up comic.
It was justified to see such a equally gifted talent with Sally Field as she portrays Mary Todd Lincoln. Sally is certainly a gifted actress and brings moments of tears to some of her scenes meanwhile demonstrating a real sense of hardship being a woman from yesteryear.
This film seems to find its way with from the storytelling part of things but it seemed to me to lack something. I kept waiting to see Indiana Jones run from a giant boulder.
In all fairness, this is a piece of American history and would make a good collection to other films recently released about the16th President of the United States, who served from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. I did like how this part of Abraham's life was portrayed in this film done in a tasteful yet graceful way in the form of sequence.
Abraham Lincoln had unusually long arms, feet, had long legs, a long thin face and neck. Before his death, it was presumed that he was dying from some form of cancer, this would help explain his physical appearance.
William Seward is played by veteran actor David Strathairn who I always remember in the 1992 film Sneakers directed by Phil Alden Robinson. Irwin 'Whistler' Emery was David's character in that film, and he was blind an unforgettable performance.
More talents folks appear in this film including Joseph Gordon-Levitt (3rd Rock from the Sun television series) who plays Robert Lincoln. It seems Joseph has been showing up in more and more different marquee films lately. From the latest Batman film The Dark Knight Rises (2012) to the upcoming Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (2013).
The cast is loaded with more talent including: James Spader who appears in this film as W.N. Bilbo, Hal Holbrook as Preston Blair, Tommy Lee Jones as Thaddeus Stevens, John Hawkes as Robert Latham, Jared Harris as Ulysses S. Grant, and finally Jackie Earle Haley as Alexander Stephens. There are others, but I will stop here.
Sometimes having a cast of familiar faces this large can take away from a film such as this, but I believe nothing was lost with their performances, in fact, I think it actually added another dimension to this feature.
The storyline follows the American Civil War until its end and along the way we see how it affected the country and help shape things for many different people especially the slavery being ended in the United States. Give this film a chance at least when it comes out on DVD.
