A tremendous film with astounding performances

Rating: 8/10 (23 October 2013)

The Steven Spielberg-directed Lincoln won two Oscars. But it could have easily won a couple more. Dealing with a momentous period in the life of the larger-than-life Abraham Lincoln and the events around him in his final years, the film achieved the fine balance between engaging the audience with Lincoln the man and the individuals around him from a personal perspective while capturing the aura of the great visionary.
Daniel Day-Lewis, in a superlative performance, is a treat to watch. The man invites aura and Day-Lewis absolutely nails the personality of the great erstwhile President of the USA to perfection. The poise, the voice, the gait, the delivery of the anecdotes and the list could go on. This is a performance that you feel like watching on loop. From Lincoln the husband to Lincoln the politician with a lawyer's brain, he engages the audience with each of Lincoln's many avatars. To top it, Tommy Lee Jones as the Radical Republican Thaddeus Stevens is icing on the cake. Tommy Lee Jones with his thundering presence owns every scene he is in and holds his own with aplomb even in his scenes with Daniel Day-Lewis. Sally Field as Mrs. Lincoln is terrific and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the son is quite likable.
However, there is much more to the film than performances. As Lincoln is at once about the force that is Lincoln and the pain of slavery, Spielberg needed to highlight both aspects simultaneously. And this is exactly what he does with tremendous skill and grace in his showcasing of a remarkable leader's heroic yet political mission against the spectre of a ravaging war looming large over a man's ambition of ending what he considered a heinous crime against humanity itself.
Featuring memorable sequences, breathtaking performances and storytelling of the highest quality, Lincoln is a must-watch.