This isn’t Spielberg’s best film. But when you’ve directed
almost 50 movies, and amongst them are some of the greats such as Schindler’s
List, then a film not being your best doesn’t really mean much... And to be
fair it’s still up there.
Lincoln starts off by showing a brutally bloody battle one
year before the end of the American civil war and the opening scene really
sucks you in from the offset. That’s pretty much as far as the film goes with
showing us the horrors of the American civil war however. So if you want to
watch a film that has loads of battle scenes in it, then this film is not for
you.
Instead Lincoln moves forward to the very final months of
the civil war and is mainly focused around the political struggles that Abraham
Lincoln (Daniel Day-Lewis) faces in trying to pass the thirteenth amendment to
end slavery, whilst at the same time trying to end the war... at the right
time. Lincoln is a film that is fully focused on US history and politics. It
shows the struggles that the Union faced internally in trying to eradicate
slavery, the different views that particular groups of politicians had on
giving slaves their freedom, and even touched on Lincoln’s own views regarding
equality between white and black people (although unless you know what Lincolns
views really where then you probably won’t realise).
Daniel Day-Lewis does a superb job at playing the role of
Lincoln; a mainly calm, storytelling, convincing man that was loved by most. He shows
how Lincoln had a knack for changing the minds of men without them realising
what he was doing until it was already done.
But I don’t think Daniel Day-Lewis was the best actor in
this film and I don’t think that Abraham Lincoln was the best Character either,
even though it’s a film about him. The guy who stole the show for me and made
me really connect with this film was Representative Thaddeus Stevens (Tommy Lee
Jones). Stevens would probably be classed as an extreme left winger in today’s
US politics, so you can imagine what the thought of him in the 19th
century. He not only advocated that black people should be free from slavery,
but that they should be treated as white people’s equal (something that Lincoln
never did). Anyway, I digress into a
History lesson, although that is what this film is. Stevens in this film is portrayed
brilliantly and he has an extremely dry, insulting wit that he uses in the
House constantly in quick response to any attack that is sent his way. In
short, Stevens will make you laugh in this film because he’s brilliantly provocative.
Unfortunately this film is a little too long for my liking
and could probably have told the same story in two hours. The end also seems quite
messy. It seems that Lincoln’s death is rushed through as a way of trying to
avoid telling that par of history. And then there’s a bit of a flashback to one of Lincoln’s speeches.
It’s a shame really because this film could have ended a lot better in a number
of different ways.
THE VERDICT
Lincoln is a brilliant film for portraying US history (although
too gently at times) and the political system that surrounded the Union towards
the end of the civil war. This film will teach you about a very important era
in US history whilst giving you a glimpse into who the people at the time
really were. The acting in it is brilliant and the characters are played exceptionally
well. Lincoln, although a very serious film,
will not fail to make you laugh on occasions. This goes double if you enjoy politics
as well. But if you’re not into politics or history and you need lots of battle
scenes, then this film isn’t for you and you may find that its 150 minute
length may drag. Otherwise, this film is worth a watch.
LHSRAting for Lincoln – 7.8/10
- Ayden
