"Steven Spielberg is directing a movie about Lincoln?!" "Who's playing Lincoln? DANIEL DAY-LEWIS!? Whaaaaaaaat?!" -- Me on hearing about LINCOLN
Going into Steven Spielberg's LINCOLN, I couldn't have been more excited. One of the most successful directors of all time directing one the greatest, most intense actors in the history of film as one of America's most heralded presidents in what was said to be a gritty and realistic depiction of Lincoln's final months on Earth? Who wouldn't be excited?! However, when LINCOLN was first released in America I didn't happen to be in the country and by the time I got back, it had made its way out of most cinemas. But I have finally seen it! And seeing as it is now a frontrunner for most major categories in this year's award season and seeing as it is going to be finally released at the local cinema here in Martin County, I thought I might share my (hopefully) brief thoughts.
As I said above, LINCOLN portrays the final months of Lincoln's life. To quote Rotten Tomatoes, "In a nation divided by war and the strong wings of change, Lincoln pursues a course of action designed to end the war, unite the country and abolish slavery." Essentially, however, the film is focused on the passing of a single piece of legislation, particularly the 13th amendment (the one that abolished slavery)... and it lasts two and half hours.
Now, I'm not saying LINCOLN is overly long, but it's totally too long. Much of this has to do with the family elements in the film. Any scene involving Sally Field (as Mary Todd Lincoln) or Joseph Gordon-Levitt (as Lincoln's son Robert) fall with a dramatic thud and just lie there. Spielberg has a bad habit of shoving family drama into his films and it constantly does them a disservice. It's not that Sally Field and JGL are bad actors. They're fantastic. It's just that this isn't what the film is truly concerned with. The only purpose these scenes serve is to show a different side to Lincoln. "Oh, look, he isn't the perfect, mythical figure we've made him out to be! He has family problems like everybody else!" And in theory this would have worked. However, because the film in fact does mythologize the man, these scenes feel out of place and, to be blunt, boring. All of these scenes, adding up to about 30 minutes of screen time, could have easily been cut and the result would be a more concise, entertaining film.
But speaking of the man himself, we obviously need to talk about Daniel Day-Lewis as the titular president. In a word, he's amazing. Many people have already penciled him in for the Academy Award for Best Actor and after seeing the film I concur. The way he is able to wholly embody the mythical figure of Lincoln is uncanny. The walk, the voice, the look, it's all perfect. When you see still photos of Day-Lewis, you say to yourself, "Yeah, looks like what'd I'd expect after hearing Daniel Day-Lewis is playing Lincoln." But on film, when he is commanding the room, he's unrecognizable. It's not Daniel Day-Lewis you're looking at, it's Lincoln incarnate.
The only problem is the script. Lincoln was a good speaker, I get it. His nickname was the GREAT ORATOR for god's sake. But basically every scene with Lincoln is of him and his conspirators around a table, there's some dissension, Lincoln is quiet, and then he speaks, tells some sort of small, usually funny anecdote until suddenly he gets all serious, captivating the room and solving whatever discourse there was (or at least making them forget there was a discourse for a while). The first couple of times this is completely engaging. However, by the 11th time it happens you are just wishing for the entire room to get up, mutter, "Oh, bullshit, Lincoln," and shuffle out of the room to have an ale or a duel or something.
This is not the gritty, realistic depiction of Lincoln's life that we were promised. In fact, it borders on the ridiculous. From the wigs to the muttonchops to random famous actor after random famous actor popping up to play bit-part senators and representatives, there is a definite comedic feel to the film apart from the explicit comedy of Lincoln's stories and James Spader's Three Stooges-esque slapstick. Lee Pace (PUSHING DAISES) in particular plays such a cartoonishly evil character that it makes you question nearly every character choice in the film. Do we mythologize Lincoln's life? Of course we do. And while I suppose it could be argued that this was Spielberg's point in making the world of his film so ridiculous, the mise-en-scene and tone of film hint at anything but.
Don't get me wrong, I didn't dislike the film. Not entirely. Apart from Daniel Day-Lewis's amazing performance, seeing Tommy Lee Jones actually bring his A-game to a film again was a nice surprise. His Thaddeus Stevens is a very complex and conflicted character, grappling with his own personal beliefs and whether or not he should go against those beliefs and do whatever it takes in order to get this greatly important amendment passed. And while a lot of the film feels ridiculous, what Spielberg is trying to show -- Lincoln's struggle to get this amendment passed while having the even more important specter of the civil war and thousands of lives hanging over his head and the backward dealings that needed to be done to accomplish this feat -- is fascinating. Equally fascinating and enrapturing are the scenes in which the representatives are arguing over and finally voting on the amendment. As a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the political system in action (a la THE WEST WING or IN THE LOOP), LINCOLN truly shines.
Basically, LINCOLN is an average film with a few above average performances. While this would often be considered a success, with Spielberg it just isn't so. The film is overly long, confused, and filled with far too much family drama (complete with manipulative John Williams musical swells) and scenes that, while perhaps historically accurate, do nothing for the film (I'm looking at you, opening scene with Emancipation Proclamation recitation). However, a beautifully crafted and shot civil-war era world (cinematography by Janusz Kaminski) and some great performances including Jones and a for-the-ages performance by Daniel Day-Lewis save the film from being a complete wash. I just expected more from a collaboration between Spielberg and Tony Kushner (writer of the amazing ANGELS IN AMERICA). But hey, it's still ten thousand times better than WAR HORSE.
6.5 out of 10
