Movie Review – Lincoln (2012)

President Abraham Lincoln attempts to amend the American Constitution to abolish slavery before the Civil War comes to an end.

Long in development, Steven Spielberg finally brings his Abraham Lincoln project to the big screen with Daniel Day-Lewis (My Left Foot) playing the title character rather than the originally attached Liam Neeson (Taken).  Rather than cover the entire life of the 16th President of the United States, Spielberg has elected to explore the last six months before he was assassinated.  Hired to write the screenplay was playwright Tony Kushner, who first collaborated with the Academy Award-winning filmmaker on another historical picture, Munich (2005).  Serving as the main source material for Kushner is the biography Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln authored by Doris Kearns Goodwin, which chronicles the political deal-making orchestrated by the leader of the White House.

Central to the story is the struggle to pass in the House of Representatives the 13th Amendment to the American Constitution which would legally abolish slavery.  Complicating matters is that the Civil War is drawing to a close.  If a peace treaty is signed before the legislation comes into law the political willingness to do so will be lost as it was based on the fact that bringing about the freedom of the Negroes in the South would end the bloody conflict.  Troubled by a son (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who wants to enlist for military duty before the fighting is over, a wife (Sally Field) who is haunted by the public duty that goes along with being a presidential spouse which she holds responsible for fatally neglecting a sick child, and a divided political party which sees him foolishly jeopardising his public popularity, Abraham Lincoln navigates these obstacles with a penchant of telling stories and a gravitas of a self-educated man who has never forgotten his humble beginnings.

While acclaimed actors like Anthony Hopkins (Instinct), Sean Penn (Shanghai Surprise), and Robert De Niro (City by the Sea) have gone on automatic pilot for some of their performances over the years, the same thing cannot be said of Daniel Day-Lewis who becomes a chameleon with every cinematic character he portrays; the British thespian literally looks and acts like Abraham Lincoln by imitating the tone of his voice and physical mannerisms.  I have my doubts that Liam Neeson could have completely inhabited the role as Day-Lewis does.  Tommy Lee Jones (The Fugitive) also stands out for his part as the crafty and wry witted Radical Republican Congressional leader Thaddeus Stevens.  Sally Field is good but saddled with the typical role of the disgruntled wife or girlfriend whose purpose is to add trouble on the home front for the protagonist.  Also the storyline featuring Joseph Gordon-Levitt could be easily extracted without the viewer noticing.  

What really works well is the storyline featuring John Hawkes (The Sessions) and his colleagues who are responsible for procuring the necessary votes to pass the 13th Amendment; their misadventures provide much needed comic relief to the movie.  To his credit Steven Spielberg, like his leading man, shows restraint by letting the action come to the camera rather than making dramatic sweeping shots.  The action is dialogue driven and the majority of the scenes take place indoors which greatly benefits from theatrical stage experience of Tony Kushner.  Whereas Amistad (1997) became bogged down by the heavy subject matter of slavery, Lincoln is liberated by it as the cinematic chemistry between Spielberg and Daniel Day-Lewis is truly an Oscar-worthy affair.