Steven Spielberg's brilliant historical imagination vividly captures the Presidency of Abraham Lincoln

Rating: 9/10 (20 January 2013)

Who can't help but love Steven Spielberg? Spielberg, one of the most creative minds in Hollywood, has all made films of high historical importance. After making films about World War II and the Holocaust, Spielberg has gone on to another high area of historical importance: Abraham Lincoln and Lincoln's last three months (with a little bit of his four years altogether) as President.
The result is Lincoln, starring Daniel Day-Lewis as our sixteenth and, as most people agree, most beloved President.
As director, Steven Spielberg takes Day-Lewis and a powerful ensemble cast (most notably Sally Field, Joseph-Gordon Levitt, Hal Holbrook, Tommy Lee Jones, and James Spader). Viewers are shown by Spielberg what was going on in the Civil War in early 1865 and, in the meanwhile, the House of Representatives as its members were in the process of deciding either for or against slavery. The stresses of President Lincoln around this time are shown, not only in his job, but also in his personal life, most notably with his wife Mary Todd (portrayed by Sally Field) and son Robert (portrayed by Joseph-Gordon Levitt). Viewers are given a ride inside of President Lincoln's mind, a mind of faith, humor, and sometimes darkness as it was and as it evolved through the most trying times of President Lincoln's life. As a Lincoln scholar, I can tell you that the way Spielberg documents all of these personal traits about President Lincoln—and the way that the personal traits appear themselves—are impeccably portrayed in both quality and quantity. Daniel Day-Lewis, even if his heritage is the polar opposite of President Lincoln's, brings the beautiful talent that we all know and love him for right into his performance as President Lincoln. Every mannerism of President Lincoln, every trait of President Lincoln, is present in Day-Lewis' performance of him.
My only real beef to pick with Lincoln is the fact that it does not document the entire life of President Lincoln, which keeps it from (in my opinion) being the ultimate Lincoln biography (compared to the biographies that record all of President Lincoln's life). However, given how many limitations on time filmmakers have, I can't hold it against Spielberg. In "making do," so to speak, Spielberg succeeded in giving viewers a whole glimpse of Lincoln in spite of covering a small (but largely important) part of his life.
Recommended for ALL, especially those who are and want to be Lincoln scholars.