Lincoln (2012)

Lincoln (PG-13) - Review

"Honest Abe"

It opens on a battlefield, black Union soldiers tussling hand to hand with Southern Rebels, their bayonets stabbing and their boot heels mashing each others faces into the mud. This is the terrible war that contrived a lasting peace and continued freedom for all citizens of the United States of America.

Spielberg's long awaited biopic about Honest Abe comes to us amid a 2012 political climate rife with dogma and unbending ideals. To see what Abraham Lincoln (handsomely portrayed by the master Daniel Day Lewis) had to go through to get the 13th amendment, which barred all slavery in these United States, passed and ratified it gives one renewed hope in the democratic process. How he did it is half the story. Who Lincoln was, or at least an attempt at showing who the true man might have been beyond all the legends and mythos, is the other half.

The Civil war is winding down but losses are still heavy. The President, newly elected to his second term, has made it his first and most solemn duty to outlaw slavery before the Southern states have a chance to dangle the carrot of a misguided peace (one with slavery intact). Meanwhile the dastardly Democrats are trying to defeat the motion, the Left Wing Republicans want the bill to be more radical and the centrists want peace at any price and consider it a hindrance. Lincoln uses any means at his disposal to get the country on the right path; iffy morality, the use of sharp tongued lobbyists, political back scratching, gentle persuasion and powerful compassion for his fellow man.

Tommy Lee Jones is perfectly cast as a powerful Abolitionist caught between his morals and the political machinations of the day, his face and voice and acting are as American as apple pie. The rest of the ensemble cast are in minor roles in a major piece of American history and play their parts admirably. Daniel Lewis is Lincoln with a surprising gait, his voice soft and with a touch of backwoods accent. The obvious charm and Americana that Lincoln must be imbued with is present here, the centerpiece of a broad array of ideas.

The events are procedurally fascinating and it is a open handed attempt at portraying them and the man with truth and vigor. It cannot be escaped that this film is essentially about the process of debate and governance over one of the most important moments in Constitutional law since, well, the Constitution itself was ratified. This lack of action or lasers may be a determent to some viewers. The lighting gets a bit overhanded in places, bringing out that old Spielberg shmaltz that long has stained his films. Luckily that sentimentality also flows through Abe's vein's, and Lewis wields it beautifully as a man with unflinching vision of the ideals of America, past and present and future. That the movie holds together and remains entertaining is a testament to the script and actors and a remarkable achievement for Mr. Spielberg.

 Lincoln is a warm hearth, the logs tended and shifted with expert care. The fatherly man tells us a story, his wavering voice comforting as he leads us towards the inevitable conclusion, teaching us his sons wise old lessons as the wood crackles and pops, the cold wind blustering against the windows, seen but not felt.

8 Stovepipe Hats out of 10 (GREAT)

War Horse (2011)

War Horse (PG-13) - Review

"Horsey Sauce"

Steven Spielberg's fixation on war and it's effects turns to the livestock as an Irish family and their horse get sent off to the trenches of WWI.  Based on a novel, filtered through the exacting lens of Spielberg's aesthetic, the story comes across overburdened with sentimentality yet somewhat lightened by those Steve Spiel moments of clarity... a shot of the reflection in a horse's eye, a German Calvary muster officer who loves horses and hates sending them to their deaths, a snowy night behind the lines.  The cinematography comes across as "too perfect", like a photograph that has been air brushed to death.  The story is hardly ground breaking, but the action plentiful and dramatic, the acting top tier.   The whole project just feels like a midnight ride on a well worn path that Spielberg can do with his eyes closed.  The nag will find her way home on it's own.

5.5 Saber Rattles out of 10 (MEDIOCRE)

Empire of the Sun (1987)

Empire of the Sun (PG) - Review

"Cadillac of the Skies!"

A spoiled young British lad, grown up in 1940s Shanghai, soon experiences the loss of affluence and innocence as the Japanese enter the city limits at the start of World War Two.

Jamie, the role nailed by a preteen Christian Bale (Batman Begins), must cope with the loss of his home and family, living on the mean streets with fellow waifs and mercenaries (one by John Malkovich at his slimiest).  They are soon all rounded up and sent to Japanese POW camps, where Jim is adopted by disparate families: the starving yet stiff-upper-lipped British are his mother while the wiley and stubborn American GIs are the father he idolizes.  Striving and scheming against their severe Jap captors, Jim must take the brunt of human compassion and treachery of wartime China.

Steven Spielberg's (Indiana Jones) best and most overlooked film, Empire of the Sun is a fantastic period piece, War record and historical work (based on the semi-autobiographical work by its author).  Combining his love of WW2 societies and technology (particularly fighter planes), Empire doesn't get bogged down in politics or finger pointing yet remains honest and true to the circumstances, all shown with an effortlessly gorgeous scope that sees the snotty angelic Jim transform to a world weary young man older than his years.  Empire is a complete picture of the world before, during and after the Second Great War, especially its effect on the young generation of all nationalities that lived through it.

10 Flashes in the Sky out of 10 (OUTSTANDING)