Chix Chat on Film Review: Abraham Lincoln's other job.

Rating: 7/10 (24 June 2012)

This film was not my first choice out of all that premiered this weekend, however it was my husband Mike's birthday weekend so the choice was his. Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter (Benjamin Walker) is the story of the 16th president of the United States extracurricular activities of preparing to become an attorney and slaying vampires. The first as the result of brutality he witnesses as a child against Will Johnson (Anthony Mackie) his friend, and the latter spurred by the death of his mother the victim of a vampire as seen in the trailer. I was a bit apprehensive about seeing this film and felt that it would be a major slight to the president who dared to unite the union by abolishing slavery. But I will admit that it was interesting how the vampire tale was woven into history. I am growing weary of vampire stories and I had to revise my way of thinking about the integration into the life of a man that was instrumental in making my quality of life possible. I realized that this telling was really not that different from Forrest Gump teaching Elvis to wiggle his hips or the discovery that Transformers were the catalyst for the Apollo space program. The story begins with a narration from Abraham to his lifelong friend Henry Sturgess (Dominic Cooper), who I found to be the most intriguing character of those featured primarily because his conflicts of conscience were the most compelling. I would say that this film is the first time that I have seen Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Mary Todd Lincoln) portray an adult character, she is typically a teen or early twenty-something but she came across very convincingly as the First Lady. I mentioned Anthony Mackie was in this film, bottom line if he's in the film I'm with it. I saw the film in 3D, but I honestly do not feel that the premium for 3-D is necessary for this film. The special effects were pretty cool especially the stampeding horse scene, however I just don't think anything would have been lost had I viewed the regular HD version of the film. There were a few moments that the computer generated imagery was just too obvious like the aerial view of Gettysburg, and other moments that were so far-fetched that it was hard to refrain from uttering an audible 'seriously' like the flaming bridge train scene. But overall it was entertaining enough that I give it an amber light