About 15 minutes into “Lincoln” I began to panic because I had forgotten my textbook. I didn’t even know I was supposed to pick up a text book prior to viewing but the film is such a dry recital of facts that I was sure that the lights would come up after the end credits and Scantrons would be passed out for a pop quiz. And there I was without my No. 2 pencil.
There is no doubt that there is plenty to learn during the film’s 150 minute running time and that an important chapter is covered regarding our country’s history. But Steven Spielberg tells the story without much heart reducing “Lincoln” to glorified reenactment instead of a lush cinematic experience. The film has too much in common with documentaries you find on PBS and the History Channel than ought to be allowed. History Buffs will swoon, I was left cold.
Of course Daniel Day-Lewis is not to blame for a single shortcoming. Day-Lewis has spoiled us and delivers what we have come to expect: A nuanced and lived-in performance that embodies the character complete and total. He IS Lincoln and there is thrill to watching one of the most important figures in U.S. history come to life. Day-Lewis gives Lincoln a voice and walk that seems spot on (I never actually met the man) and even sells the fact that he is able to Think like Honest Abe. And this president had a lot on his mind as he was faced with one of the most challenging times our country has known.
Set in 1865, shortly after Lincoln’s re-election, the core of the film focuses on the struggle of getting the 13th Amendment passed by the House of the Representatives. The Civil War has been raging for more than 4 years and end is drawing near. If Lincoln is to abolish slavery, he feels that he must get the amendment past prior to the wars conclusion. Otherwise it will never happen and the war would be even more meaningless than it already was.
But politics was a tangled web then as it is now and Lincoln faces opposition at every turn, every angle. The screaming Democrats, who are outnumbered in both the House and Congress, were stubbornly opposed while many members of Lincoln’s own Republican Party needed finessing to get on the same page. Cabinet members each had their own two pennies and even his wife, Mary Todd (Sally Field), was very opinionated. Lincoln listens to them all but very rarely takes their ideas. He is resolute about his plan for America and it was that vision that saved this country.
Spielberg has assembled an All-Star cast for his history lesson. Tommy Lee Jones as radical Republican Thaddeus Stevens brings his standard grump and, while wonderful as usual, seems too contemporary. In fact, very few of the cast breathes any life into their rolls and most come off as caricatures.
Many of the usual suspect are used by Spielberg: John Williams scores the film but there is nothing memorable that swells the soul. Janusz Kaminski touches on some battle shots early in the film that pale in comparison to his “Saving Private Ryan” work. The entire production has an old fashioned feel to it that, with last year’s “War Horse,” suggests that Spielberg is going through a phase that I wish he’d break of quick. “Lincoln” carries the constricted emotions of a film from the 40’s or 50’s. Instead of channeling Capra and Sturges, Spielberg could visit this era and add his own touch like Scorsese did with “Hugo”. Instead, Spielberg is just repeating outdated conventions that merely prove to date his film before it is even released.