The 2012 film biopic “Lincoln” is a
film about the last four months of the President’s life and the background of
what it took to pass the Thirteenth Amendment to abolish slavery. The film
covers both the political genius that Lincoln had to his fellow politics and
advisors, as well as shows the flawed side of Lincoln when dealing with his
family. This film was directed by Steven Spielberg (Schindler’s List, Saving
Private Ryan) who is no rookie when it comes to making biopics or
historical films. Lincoln is played by actor Daniel Day Lewis who totally
embodies the character of Lincoln that you almost forget that you’re watching a
performance. Another great performance of the movie was by Tommy Lee Jones as
the Republican Senator Thaddeus Stevens. Lee Jones delivers a very strong and
central performance to the whole story.
The one scene that I thought really
stood out to me was the scene between Lincoln (Day Lewis) and Stevens (Lee
Jones) in the basement of the White House. In the scene Lincoln wants Stevens
to dial down his radicalism so that he doesn’t ruin the chances of passing the
Thirteenth amendment. This approach to this scene is very quiet with the camera
only focusing on the conversation between the two characters, while cutting to
a mono shot of the character during an important thought. The costumes are very
low key just a simple suit for that time. This scene sums up the theme of the
movie cause Lincoln and Stevens both politicians with different ideals come to
better understanding of what they have to do to come together with their two
political styles to pass the amendment and accomplish their goal.
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