A Near-Great Movie And The Best Of The Year

Rating: 9/10 (4 January 2014)

Ignore the bad reviews and the lesser ratings given this picture. This is out-and-out a great, great film (even though it gets one or two details wrong - like the way Connecticut voted on the bill in question), with many great cameos and performances by some of the greatest actors of our day - not to mention the work of one of our greatest directors and movie minds ever, Stephen Spielberg.
Daniel Day Lewis (as Lincoln) is brilliant here - as are Tommy Lee Jones (as Sen. Stevens), Sally Field (as Mary Lincoln), David Strathairn (as William Seward) and many other fine actors - in bringing an important but little-told part of history to life, with all of its many colors and nuances.
And here's a side of Lincoln we haven't seen before - Lincoln the impatient and demanding power-broker. When he wanted to get something done, he wanted it done, it seems - and he knew how to get it done (even if it took some scheming to accomplish what he wanted to achieve). Mary's active role in the Lincoln Administration is also brought to life here in a way you don't see in other films. (In most other films, all they do with Mary is portray her growing madness, just one side of the picture.)
This movie is the work of heavyweights and deserves recognition for its greatness. What an accomplishment! And it makes you feel like you were right there, at a pivotal and intense time in this nation's history, with much at stake. If you want to see what a great President looks like, look no further.
Finally, this movie achieves a quality level rarely seen in modern films and you absolutely need to see it!