Lincoln Review by Darth Raptor

       Steven Spielberg's Lincoln, WTF?  I say YES, but be prepare for 150 mins of good old fashion politics where you already know the outcome.  The film Lincoln chronicles the last few months of the 16th President of the United States' life just before his assassination.  Daniel Day-Lewis and the rest of the cast put on their Oscar worthy performances to the test.  Day-Lewis completely melts into his role as Lincoln, however most notable, in my opinion, was James Spader's performance as W.N. Bilbo.  I've only seen Spader in the 1987 Romance Comedy "Mannequin" with Andrew McCarthy and Kim Cattrall.  Spader's Bilbo was an astronomical leap in my opinion.  But Daniel Day-Lewis still manages to steal the show, as he should.

       Although there's been Oscar buzz for this film, I would not say this is Spielberg's best. The film accurately, and realistically captured the era and Lincoln's cabinet in their fight to emancipate the slaves. However, the film did very little for me in capturing the tragic figure I grew up with.  I know Spielberg wanted to portray Lincoln as the man rather than the myth and I respect that.  However, whenever I think of Abraham Lincoln, I think of a great being shrouded in the company of death.  A hero who lost his mother at the age of 9, and his first love to typhoid fever.  A father who endured the personal lost of his 2 young boys.  A beautiful mind who suffered from "melancholy," better known as clinical depression throughout his life.  Also, the film would've drawn me in more had it started with both the Civil War battles, mixed with the death of his favorite son "Willie" while in the White House.  Depressing?  Yes! But that would totally show how the rest of the country was losing their sons to war. I think more artistic licenses should've been taken here.

*** SPOILER ALERT! ***

       Lincoln dies at the end!  And honestly, I was aching for a Braveheart-like ending.  I'm not saying, he should've screamed out "FREEDOM" as his last word.  Nor am I saying we should see the ghost of his 2 dead sons at the foot of his bed just before he dies.  I'm not saying that at all.  I'm just saying it would've been a nice touch.  Maybe not a direct rip of Mel Gibson's highlander tale, but something similar sprinkled with John William's magic would've been nice.  True it would've been out of place with the whole tone of the film, but DAMMIT that's what I want!  And because they didn't play up this moment, why even have a death scene at all?  The movie would've been better had it ended where we see Lincoln's black servant smile as he watches the President steadily walk down the hallway on his way to the theater.  I think that was poignant in its own right.