A very good movie but now I see why the cable news crowd loved it

Rating: 8/10 (28 December 2012)

I have read Team of Rivals, Lincoln(Hebert),Battle Cry of Freedom and have seen all the History Channel specials, Ken Burns and can answer a lot of Lincoln questions on Jeopardy. I honestly don't know why the concentration was on the 13th amendment being signed before Appromatox when there was so much involved in his life. The last 25 minutes(after the signing) was outstanding. A lot of the courtroom and back room scenes could have been out of "Bonanza" with bombastic oratory and cheap sideburns. Everybody is good, Mary Todd, Lincoln Jr and of course Abe. I know Pres Lincoln liked to tell stories but it seemed that they overdid it at times-he wasn't Henny Youngman. I guess we ask too much of Lincoln, having read so much i have said many times - "was their really one Lincoln? Could he be a composite of multiple people? Nobody could have lived such a full life in only 56 years"