JUST got home from seeing "LINCOLN". Trust me. SEE IT. Here is why:

[RBInMaine]

Certainly no event and era in our history is more burned into our national conscience than the Civil War, the great tragedy and triumph of our nation. And Lincoln, as imperfect and human as he was, was nonetheless great in so many ways and indeed born for his times. This dramatization was very risky. It had to be done right, or calamity. Spielberg and his crew got it right. Excellent cast. Excellent script. Excellent cinematography. And Daniel Day Lewis's Oscar-worthy performance captures the Lincoln that was indeed the right man at the right time. Just BRILLIANT. Sally Field and Tommy Lee Jones were just great too. They all were. This film will go down as one of the great ones. Everyone walking out of the theater was saying "Excellent. Just excellent." Trust me. SEE IT and allow yourself to be moved by great art.

[Tunkamerica]

1. I just don't believe that Lincoln killed that many vampires

a few, sure.

[Ztolkins]

9. Historians disagree...

But I bet the number is in the 100's.

[Honeycombe8]

11. I don't know 'bout that.

He was pretty physically fit. Coulda happened.

[dgauss]

47. A few would be easy, but not with an ax.

That part was made up.

[TheDebbieDee]

57. Lol! I love you, whoever you are.........

[MynameisBlarney]

101. Srsly?

Lincoln built his own log cabin...BEFORE he was born.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

102. Lincoln split rails whil invitro.

Lincoln split rails while in vitro.

[MynameisBlarney]

103. Lincoln wrote the Ghettysburg Address

before the first trimester.

[liberal_at_heart]

2. I'm hoping to see a Saturday afternoon showing

The previews look so good.

[RBInMaine]

3. Ya, I saw previews online first. All expectations met. He tells a story about Washington's por-

trait in a bathroom in England. Wait until Lincoln gives the punchline. He was very witty. A great story teller. Day Lewis nails it.

[RBInMaine]

107. Excellent Movie

[dsc]

4. I concur

I missed the first few minutes and thus the opening credits if there were any but great film. Tommy Lee Jones was fantastic if for nothing else but the speech where his opponents bait him. Just great. It was so surreal to actually root for Republicans.

[RBInMaine]

5. The ideologies of the parties have swapped over time.The early Republicans were social progressives.

[dsc]

10. When Johnson was impeached

the man who would have taken over if he had been convicted was the Congressman from my county. Northeast Ohio was a hot bed of Radical Republicanism.

[RBInMaine]

71. The radical Republian faction wanted to severely punish the South for secession and the war.

[dsc]

85. and deservedly so

the radicals were right as rain.

[RBInMaine]

87. I would have supported the more moderate Lincoln 10% plan. We needed to heal the nation. The

South's tremendous defeat and physical devistation was a severe punishment in and of itself.

[Hippo_Tron]

94. Moderate reconstruction led to 90 years of Jim Crow

The south should've been treated as conquered people, no traitors should've been allowed to return to power, and the federal troops should've remained there until enough of the KKK was either shot or hanged that they just gave up.

We did that with Germany after World War II and it turned out a hell of a lot better than the south did after the Civil War.

[exboyfil]

104. I thought the Hayes/Tilden

Presidential election was a bigger driver to a Jim Crow south.

[Hippo_Tron]

105. Reconstruction was basically over before the Hayes/Tilden election

IMO, the vast majority of white southerners should not have had voting rights in 1876. But even if my position on that seems a little extreme, the fact of the matter was that not only did they, but many blacks didn't because as soon as the union troops left, the Ku Klux Klan used violence to prevent them from voting.

Jim Crow became the de facto policy anywhere in the south where the union troops were no longer present. It just wasn't codified until 1876 when all of the troops were removed.

[RBInMaine]

119. Apples and oranges. Those very deep-seeded attitudes would not have been beaten out of the South.

[ceejdre82]

28. but they were a very different kind of republican back then...and what the South considered democrat

s shared a lot of the republican ideology of today....it amazes me how progressive Lincoln was.

[lalalu]

6. Everyone says it is great.

I am hoping to have time to see it over the holiday weekend. Hopefully other people will be shopping while we go to the movies. It has worked out well in the past.

[RBInMaine]

75. YUP, GO SEE IT. It is really good. So interesting to watch the politics the 13th Amendment.

[Omaha Steve]

7. Marta and I saw it at noon

The theater was 1/2 full. Great turnout for that time of day on a Friday. It was a mostly older than us crowd. It is everything that has been said about it.

[RBInMaine]

13. The ending scenes were something else. Tragedy and triumph. One life can mean so much.

[Honeycombe8]

8. I'm going to see it Sunday. Glad to hear it's good, because it's loooong. nt

[RBInMaine]

14. You'll love it. You get so absorbed the time melts away. You'll wish it was longer.

[InsultComicDog]

12. Bring a secessionist!

[Blue_In_AK]

15. Very, very good film.

I saw it in LA last week with my daughter who is an attorney for the Directors' Guild. Afterwards JJ Abrams conducted a Q&A with Spielberg himself about the making of the movie, which was fascinating. Daniel Day-Lewis gives an almost supernatural performance. I can't wait to see it again with my husband now that I'm back in Anchorage.

[JNelson6563]

63. Wow! How exciting!

Very cool that you were there for all of that! You must be proud of your daughter.

Great post, thanks for sharing that!

Julie

[ChoppinBroccoli]

16. I Hear This Movie Totally Glosses Over All His Vampire Killing

Thumbs down!!! LOL

[TeamPooka]

58. true dat

[7wo7rees]

17. After "There Will Be Blood"

I'll see everything Daniel Day Lewis or Paul Thomas Anderson do...ever.

[Cha]

18. Thanks for the Enthusiastic Review, RBInMaine!

[Loki]

19. Saw it today and the theater was packed.

My husband and I were one of the younger couples there, but none the less, we were all under the spell of a beautiful and heart wrenching film of one of the most complicated and uplifting periods of our country's history. I cried watching this film....a deep sadness that we lost such a great man, but also grateful that we had him, for surely without his guidance we would not be the country that we know today. People stood and applauded at the end. I haven't experienced that in a theater for a very long time.

[Zorra]

20. Thanks! Can't wait to see it, I know I'm going to absolutely love it. nt

[bklyncowgirl]

21. Just came back from it and I totally agree. Awesome movie!

Great performances by Daniel Day Lewis and the rest of the cast.

I am a real nitpicker when it comes to historical accuracy--at least in the visual stuff. I've been known to shout out loud in poorly researched movies--my husband embarrassed by past experience, would never have accompanied me--except for the fact that this was a Spielberg film and he's famous for getting the details right.

I was really impressed with the look of the film. Alot of the scenes looked like they came right out of a photograph by Mathew Brady. So many historical dramas tend to make the past look like Disneyland--all clean and tidy. In this movie the streets were full of mud and horse shit, people had bad haircuts and were freezing their asses off. They guy who played Grant looked like he cut his hair with a dull bayonet. The scene of Lincoln riding through what I believe was the aftermath of the Battle of the Crater was horrifying--so many dead. On the other hand, I loved the scene of Lincoln hanging out with his aides late at night sending out telegraphs--state of the art communications at the time--that man would have LOVED e-mail. As a horse person, I appreciated the fact that they even managed to find a horse who looked like General Lee's famous Traveller in all his comformational oddness for the surrender scene.

I also loved the way they showed Lincoln as a down to earth, horse trading, whatever it takes politician. People need to see this--seriously--anyone who thinks that politics was oh so pure in our past have no idea of real history. Here's arguably our greatest president cutting deals that would make the Cornhusker Kickback look ethica. I also got a laugh at the rowdy Congress, insults shouted, hooting, hollering. They should go back to that--seriously--CSPAN would actually start to get ratings.

[PATXgirl]

24. We just got back from seeing it and you nailed everything...especially your last paragraph.

And I made the same comment to my husband: if congress still acted this way, CSPAN's ratings would soar!!

[Odin2005]

122. I wish Congressional oratory now was like it was then.

Could you see any politician today pull off a 5-hour righteous rant like the one that got Charles Sumner caned in 1856? I don't.

[RBInMaine]

59. Yup. Any movie version of history can't be perfect, but they did VERY WELL with this one.

[RBInMaine]

60. And the scenes of Lincoln telling his stories and philosophizing were just AWESOME.

[Vinnie From Indy]

79. They went to astonishing lengths to insure historical accuracy

Included in this film are actual sounds that Lincoln himself would have heard. Everything from church bells to a ticking watch was recorded from the actual items that were part of Lincoln's life.


http://www.npr.org/2012/11/10/164716611/hearing-history-in-the-sounds-of-lincoln

http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/movies/historical-sound-effects-captured-in-spielbergs-lincoln/2012/11/13/f1aa9b0c-2ce2-11e2-9ac2-1c61452669c3_story.html

[bklyncowgirl]

88. That's a Spielberg strength I think

I remember watching War Horse and being amazed at how they got everything--even the saddles and harness that the horses were wearing--absolutely right. Back when I was a kid I used to ride at a stable that used old German military saddles on some of their hard to fit horses so I knew what I was looking at. I also learned from the movie what the hole in the back of the cantle of those saddles was used for--I'd always thought it was to strap a pack or something on but if Spielberg's equine costumers were correct it was used for a crupper strap, that is a strap which goes to a loop around the horse's tail to help hold the saddle in place.

At any rate all the historical accuracy in the world isn't terribly important if the writing or the acting isn't up to par but in this movie it all came together.

[MadrasT]

93. Battle of the Crater was June 1864.

The scene where Lincoln rode through the battlefield was likely either Five Forks (4/1/65) or Petersburg (4/2/65). (My great great grandpa fought there and I am a bit of a Civil War nerd.)

It was a great movie. I liked it so well I will go see it a second time.

I also loved all the things you mentioned about it.

[cilla4progress]

22. Oh, yeah, gd it

I have been psyched to see this film for a couple weeks.

Opening night in our little town. Rare opportunity for hubby and self to get out of our rut and do dinner and a movie in town (we live 35 miles out of town in a rural valley).

Dinner, enh. New "seafood" restaurant. Once is probably enough.

All psyched for film. Arrive early. Settle in with another good (progressive) friend.

20 minutes in ... FILM STARTS RUNNING UPSIDE DOWN AND BACKWARDS! NO KIDDING! It was loaded wrong on the reel (yes, reel. Apparently some theaters still show films on reels). Theater manager said it would take a couple hours to fix, so they kicked us out and gave us rainchecks!!!

I'm so torked! Probably get to see it Sunday anyway ...

[progressoid]

38. Upside down and backwards!

I don't mean to laugh but...

Hope you get to see it properly soon.

[cilla4progress]

46. oooh you....! :)

I just checked again with husband (he's more tech-y than me ha ha ): "upside down and backwards, right?" Yup, he says, still trying to figure out how! It happened at the point when the scene switched from the white house to congress. So the congress critters were all upside down and speaking like some Asian dialect! At first I thought it might be another one of ol' Abe's weird dreams, like at the beginning of the movie!

Sorry to be crude, but it was like sex without the orgasm! Heckuva night.

Now you can for real!

[CBGLuthier]

76. It was probably spliced together on one of those giant platters.

If just one reel was backwards like that and not all spliced together it would take all of about five minutes to fix. But the practice for years has been to take all the reels and splice them together along with the trailers and ads and create a giant loop. That way one person can be in charge of 20 screens. Best clue would be whether they use one projector or two as the old reel at a time method required.

[texshelters]

23. How was the soundtrack?

John Williams overwrought music didn't diminish the movie's impact?

PTxS

[zazen]

106. biggest flaw of film

It drove me nuts. A New Yorker review pointed out it could have been written 30 years ago. I think you could close your eyes and think it was Saving Private Ryan. It marred a film that was great in many other respects. I mean, did we really need to be told with soaring horns that "this is an important moment" every five minutes? Ugh.

Daniel Day-Lewis's performance was utterly brilliant, of course.

[texshelters]

112. Thanks

Peace,
Tex Shelters

[patrice]

25. Have been looking forward to this. Also have been listening to Cold Mountain. nt

[Cracklin Charlie]

33. Cold Mountain is a great book! n/t

Edit to add: I think, having seen only previews, that Sally Field looks like the perfect choice for Mary Todd Lincoln. Glad to hear that she has a good part, as well.

[patrice]

41. I thought I might not be able take Cold Mountain at first; it's a little like reading Cormack

McCarthy, e.g. The Road, for all of the darkness.

CM IS beautifully written though and I'm enjoying the socially and psychologically intimate group-portrait of the people, their time and their cultures.

[cilla4progress]

49. Also read Cold Mtn., but couldn't hack watching it

I have no built-in self-preservation for violent or tragic films. Sucks.

But I thought the way the book dealt with that period - focusing not on the war, but on the culture behind the front, was fascinating. I remember being depressed by the star-crossed love story, however. One knew from the beginning it would not end well.

[cilla4progress]

48. From the short bit we saw (see post above)

Sally Field looked fabulous. Did that hold up through the film? She really has some great chops, flying habit and all!

[ceejdre82]

26. I saw Doris Kearns Goodwin, the Presidential historian that wrote the book that most of the movie is

based around on Stephen Colbert and she seems amazing...I looked up all of her books and want to read and buy all of them.

[Suzy Rice]

27. Fuck

Lincoln, he was a repug! He also suspended habeas corpus. Watched it and it reminds of Bush.

[Lex]

30. Troll. Lincoln would've been DEMOCRAT today due to the Southern Strategy of the 1960's.

Back in Lincoln's day, the Republicans weren't the hideous racists they are today.

Read a book. Or at least wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_strategy

[Suzy Rice]

34. Oh yeah

the Dems back then were for freeing people enslaved.

[Lex]

35. You seem smart.

[Cirque du So-What]

36. Are you *sure* you saw the movie?

Your assertions would indicate otherwise.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

82. I Assure You The Moviegoers

I assure you the moviegoers I saw the movie with in Century City were thinking of Obama when they left the movie and not Willard
Romney or the other Republican clowns who were vying for his job during the primaries but I suspect you know that.

[RBInMaine]

89. While there was some split, the D's were MUCH MORE the PRO Slavery party of the time.

[hrmjustin]

31. Welcome to DU!

[progressoid]

39. You're still here?

[patrice]

43. It was a war. AMERICAN blood on American soil. What would you have done?

[OldDem2012]

44. Are you really that ignorant? nt.

[ReRe]

54. "Better to remain silent and be thought a fool....

....than to speak and remove all doubt." Abe Lincoln

[RBInMaine]

61. Study your history. TODAY he would be a DEMOCRAT. The ideologies of the parties have reversed over

time. Yes, he did invoke some extraordinary wartime presidential powers, but he had an extraordinary crisis to manage. And he did not initiate the war. Indeed, he implored the South not to choose secession. Going in he was for halting the expansion of slavery and opposed it entirely on principle which in fact sparked secession. He fought hard for the 13th Amendment as shown in the movie. He also built the transcontinental railroad, the transcontinental telegraph lines, and initiated the land grant university system. He had a LIBERAL plan for reconstruction in opposition to that of the Radical Republicans of the time who really wanted to vanquish the South. Your comparison to Bush is deeply flawed and a very poor reading of the historical record.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

83. Wow. And I Thought Any Sentient Human Being Knew The Parties Had Traded Their Historical Roles/nt

[jpak]

114. Other than Lincoln - republicans are douchebags

yup

[cliffordu]

115. You little shits need to try a whole lot harder.

Really. It's disgusting. Be a better troll. You deserve to be the best you can be!!!

[TlalocW]

29. Good to know that apparently

Spielberg doesn't foist his daddy issues on us again and make it about the relationship between Lincoln and his son Tad.

TlalocW

[RBInMaine]

62. Though you do see Lincoln the father as well, which is good. All aspects of the man are shown.

[TlalocW]

72. Just so long as it's not incessantly beaten into us

Like his other films.

TlalocW

[nolabear]

32. This should become part of the history curriculum. Brilliant!

The look at the machinations and conflicts around what we only see as a noble, rather two dimensional no-brainer (ratification of the thirteenth amendment) was shown as the conflicted, messy and wonderful process it most likely was. The script is wonderful and plays humor and morality and power off beautifully.

And Daniel Day Lewis is a genius. As is Sally Field, who never ceases to surprise me.

Yes, one of the best.

[RBInMaine]

64. I really like what you say here. The movie shows Lincoln the man, the politician, the husband, the

father, the storyteller, the philosophizer, the savvy dealmaker, and THE BELOVED PRESIDENT.

[Suzy Rice]

37. I am a

black person that lives in Detroit. I am a teacher and things are going really bad here. We are moving to south carolina, they are hiring teachers in this bad economy. In detoit it is stupid.

[Lex]

40. You think we believe that with your screen name?

And your past posts? Go away.

[Cirque du So-What]

42. What will you be teaching?

I'm guessing NOT History or English.

[Lex]

45. LOL.

[sarge43]

110. One hopes you're not teaching history. n/t

[ProfessorGAC]

120. Or Grammar.

I'd be very concerned about any kids learning rhetoric or grammar from Suzy.

[sarge43]

121. I'd be very concerned about any kids near Suzy(?) n/t

[femrap]

50. Did the film

bring up the fact that Lincoln suffered from depression...'melancholy' as it was referred to in those days.

I'll see only because it's the only ADULT and DECENT film out for a loooooooooooooooooooong time. I think Hollywood sucks....ever since Borat was nominated for best screenplay. Sorry Borat lovers.

[dsc]

53. sort of

they do mention Mary's issues but one scene about grief would make one think of a depressed person though the word depression isn't said.

[RBInMaine]

66. First, again, as movies go, this is a DAMN GOOD ONE. Trust me and others and SEE IT. Next, as to

Lincoln's depression, which is true as he would suffer from significant bouts of depression all his life, it does mention that he went through a very difficult period of grief when his young some Willy died, and the film also shows him very quiet and contemplative and in somewhat dark places emotionally at times, such as in a VERY powerful scene when he has an argument with Mary Lincoln. Remember that the film only covers the last four months or so of his presidency and life, so there is only so much time there and in that space of time in his life he may not have had a real bout of depression. It does show him quiet and serious, as well as witty since he liked to tell funny stories. It is a BRILLIANT performance, by Daniel Day Lewis, of a very complicated and multi faceted individual.

[femrap]

81. I'll go

see it...you convinced me.

I remember reading that Lincoln would go to plays so to push the melancholy from his mind.

[PATXgirl]

78. Overall, you get a feeling of a man who we would say today is "living with depression".

That is the part where I think DD-L did a phenomenal job. He presents Lincoln as a man with the weight of the world on his shoulders, cloaked in sadness and possibly guilt for the death that they've lived through, but one who is determined to see his cause to the finish, for the sake of his family and his country.

The scene where he rides through a battlefield, I could just imagine that for a moment, part of him must have second-guessed every decision leading up to the declaration of war, and asked if there was a way it could have been avoided.

There is a line near the end where Grant mentions that Lincoln looks like he's aged a decade in a year. After watching the movie, I wonder if most of the presidents don't feel the same once their terms are finished.

[femrap]

80. Thanks

for the review. I will see the movie. Daniel Day Lewis is a great actor.

And Welcome to DU.

[MoonchildCA]

52. I have been so excited to see this movie.

I'm really happy to see the glowing review. Guess I know what my husband and I are doing this weekend.

[RBInMaine]

67. I saw it with my brother in law, a staunch Republican, and we both loved it. Just loved it.

[iemitsu]

55. I plan to see the film too.

I have been pondering the number of political, economic and social similarities one can identify in today's America and the America of the civil war era. It is both frightening disheartening to think the nation is once again so divided and divided over much the same issues: the future of our economic system, the role of labor in society, a profound misunderstanding of the character of the president by those opposed to him, regional identification ,and a struggle between state's rights and Federal power. We have people from all 50 states who have signed petitions to secede from the nation. I won't be surprised if republicans move to impeach Obama soon.
I am delighted that Obama won a second term but the losers are acting nutty. They are spewing all sorts of shit. they are in denial or deluded.
I hope it dies down soon. They are not good losers.

[Catlover827]

56. Saw it today and LOVED it. DD-L got it exactly right.

Some people (not here) have complained about the voice he gave Lincoln, but numerous accounts from Lincoln's contempories state that he had a high voice. He also got his gait exactly right - Lincoln didn't walk heel-to-toe, but picked his feet up and plunked them down flat. Just give DD-L the Oscar NOW!! Sally Field and Tommy Lee Jones were great, too. The only issue I had historically was the scene in which Mary Todd Lincoln sat on Willie's bed and cried after he had died. She supposedly never again entered that room after Willie died.

I love Abraham Lincoln so much. What a phenomenal human being.

[RBInMaine]

69. YUP, another BRILLIANT performance by Daniel Day Lewis. He is a phenomenal artist.

[RBInMaine]

68. Don't worry about impeachment or secession. It is all sour grapes blather. Even most R's don't want

to go there. Their fringe is pissed about their stunning loss. They'll get over it, or they will sink themselves even further with this radical shit. No worries.

[JNelson6563]

65. Great thread!

The previews look great and I've enjoyed reading the reviews from DUers!

Can't wait to see it!



Julie

[RBInMaine]

70. I saw the previews too, and it met all expectations. SEE IT. It's a good one.

[WiffenPoof]

73. Can't Wait To See Daniel Day-Lewis...

...in this role.

After seeing "There Will Be Blood" I am convinced that Daniel Day-Lewis is the greatest actor of our time. I don't believe that there is a close second. I have never seen an actor put so much into the roles he plays. He seems to become the characters he portrays to such an extent that he has difficulty recovering his true personality.

Paige

[RBInMaine]

74. Another BRILLIANT performance by Daniel Day Lewis.

[graham4anything]

77. Major message was Lincoln=Obama and that compromise brings great changes.

And not giving in to extremists on either the left or right.

Daniel Day Lewis 3rd Oscar
Sally Field 3rd Oscar (making it that they really, really, really really like her)
Spielberg another Oscar
Tommy Lee Jones- second Oscar

(remember when he won his first Oscar for Fugitive, he accepted the award bald, as he was filming Cobb at that time.)

Bring a hanky for some scenes.

And the Lincoln=Obama connection is amazing.
and it was, what 100 years after the 13th that LBJ signed the acts. and 43 years after that a Black person became President.
Lincoln FDR LBJ OBAMA. for all times forward

[HiPointDem]

90. seriously? the message of the film was lincoln = obama? does compromise bring

good changes, you mean?

[graham4anything]

91. yes. Without getting help from the other side both Lincoln and LBJ would not have gotten it though

and the way that the winning side did WHATEVER IT TAKES to get it done (including a little ruse now and then.)

the goal was the prize
winning at all costs no matter what to move forward

(much like today where certain democrats feel compromise was bad

without it though, static remains, no forward movement
(i.e.- needing and getting Dennis Kunicich on the health care vote even if Dennis wanted more and some democrat extremists wished more which cuoldn't be gotten

That is the genius of
Lincoln
FDR
Johnson
Obama

they got it above the whining of others and in spite of it

as we move forward

and Lincoln and Obama from day one has always been the thinker like candidates, very very carefully choosing words
exact words and thinking always steps ahead.

[RBInMaine]

92. Governing can not occur without some amount of compromise. Compromise resulted in the CONSTITUTION.

[naaman fletcher]

84. I saw it yeserday, it was great, but with two complaints:

1. The opening scene was ridiculously contrived and silly. I was hoping for an awesome Daniel Day Lewis performance and was worried it was going to be all hollywood crap. It wasn't except that opening scene, which should have been cut.

2. Casting Tommy Lee Jones was a mistake. Lewis was amazing as usual, and sally field also. However, the ubiquitos Tommy Lee Jones has the same voice in every movie. While watching Lewis, you think you are watching Lincoln. With Jones you are thinking "Hey it's Tommy Lee Jones in another movie where he talks bluntly".

[RBInMaine]

86. I will agree a bit with your first point, but Jones was fine. In the opening scene I think it was

fine to show him out among the troops, and he did go out and see them a number of times during the war. But the bit where they were reciting the Gettysburg address back to him was too melodramatic. I will agree there. Otherwise, very, very good.

[Honeycombe8]

95. I thought just the opposite. I thought this was one of Jones' best performances, but not one of DDL

but not one of DDl's best performances.

James Spader was awesome (as usual), as were Fields and the other numerous known actors.

But Jones, I think, brought a certain grittiness and reality to his character.

David Straitharn....OMG, what a good lookin' sexy man, for his age.

[Honeycombe8]

96. Saw this movie today. It's good, but I don't recommend it.

It's good, but not great, so if you don't have anything else to do, it's an entertaining film. Nothing beyond that.

I found it corny, sentimental, boring at the beginning. It's about the passing of the 13th Amendment, and that's it. Oh, yeah, Lincoln and other politicians were involved in that, but it's really about how to get a constitutional amendment passed, how hard it is to do, and how unlikely it was to get that one passed at that time.

DDL turned in a good performance, but not quite as good as he normally does. Maybe because he missed the crustiness of the woodsman in Lincoln? Not being from the country, he may not have realized that (or Spielberg). Whatever it was, his performance didn't wow me. Then again, we don't really know what Lincoln was like. It was a good performance...don't get me wrong. It just wasn't quite a "wow."

Sally Field and Jones were superb. Spader - wow, he was so entertaining. He always is. Who'd have thought that good lookin' young man that Spader was years ago (what a hunk he was...too beautiful to be male) would end up being an awesome character actor! Anyone recognize one of Spader's cohorts as one of the trio who was in Wherefore Art Thou, Brother?

David Straitharn....that man was so sexy when he was young. He's "mature" now, but still what I'd call a sexy man. A very sexy man.

Good movie. But I wouldn't tell a friend to go see it. I'd recommend they wait and see it on TV.

[RBInMaine]

108. Well. I suppose there always has to be at least one minority opinion.

[Honeycombe8]

111. I guess so. My two friends felt the same way. It was worth the $6, but not more. IMDB reviews are

good, but not great, most of them.

[RBInMaine]

116. It was a spellbinding performance and a great look at the politics of the issue.

[CANDO]

97. Fantastic movie

DDL nailed Lincoln! You weren't watching him portray Lincoln, you were time warped back to 1865 and were actually seeing the man. Sally Field was extraordinary. The opening scene was over the top just a little. Perhaps this was historically accurate? I don't know. They say Spielberg researched this for 12 years. Many very moving moments. My favorite was when Lincoln scolded his cabinet during a late night session. Two of them were going soft and Lincoln got downright PISSED. He slams the table and stands up and announces that he is the POTUS and with that title he is "clothed with IMMENSE POWER", "now go get me 2 more votes!" I thought the end of the movie was a downer. I think maybe I'm too conditioned to expect some sort of exhilaration during the ending scenes of a movie. But I was left wanting an exhilarating moment, and there was none that I could feel. I'm wondering if anyone else felt that let down at the very end? As I recall, Lincoln was giving his 2nd Inaugural Address, but it still felt emotionally flat.

[argiel1234]

98. Daniel Day-Lewis, to be quite frank is one of the finest actors ever

I have not seen this film yet but will be going soon

[RBInMaine]

109. Yup, he can do anything. Extraordinary.

[argiel1234]

99. oh and kick

and recommending

[ellisonz]

100. To the person in the 4th row with their iPhone out

Put that shit away

P.S. It was a most excellent film.

[nadinbrzezinski]

113. We went yesterday

And I know none remarks this, but the young actor who played Tad Lincoln, the youngest son, was brilliant.

It also humanizes Lincoln.

[RBInMaine]

117. The Tad Lincoln actor was also British. He did a great job too.

[RBInMaine]

118. This is a great weekend to go shopping and end the day with a viewing of Lincoln.