Wisely avoiding the usual biopic template, Spielberg focuses on a specific period in Lincoln's life and his attempts to pass a critical amendment to the US constitution. Indeed, many of Spielberg's directorial flourishes are absent here and even the score by Williams is understated. Spielberg seems happy to let his cast and the script do the work and rightly so as he has a great cast of supporting actors and a script worth dwelling on without distractions. Whilst a great performance is expected from Day Lewis, he continues to amaze with how he seemingly inhabits any role he plays. He IS Lincoln and even the cast seem in awe of him and the character he plays. What is also surprising given how serious the subject matter is, is how much humour there is within the script. If there is a flaw, it is in the final moments of the film. The inclusion of Lincoln's assassination would be expected going into this film, but when it arrives, it seems tacked on and unnecessary, given the focus on the constitutional amendment. Perhaps it is a mark of how good the film is and what a significant piece of history it covers that it would have been far better to leave the audience remembering Lincoln's achievement rather than his death. Otherwise a great film!

This is a flat out great movie. I first watched it several years ago and enjoyed it, so recently I noticed it on the IMDB streaming service and decided to watch it again. I still think it is great. I guess I had forgotten that it was a Spielberg film, so why wouldn’t it be great? It was many years in the making and was partially based on Doris Goodwin Kearns excellent non-fiction book Team of Rivals.

The cast is excellent: Daniel Day-Lewis is really impressive as President Lincoln. Lincoln is believable, human, showing several sides of his personality. He is at times funny, wise, empathetic, coarse, tortured and — well, everything I would expect after reading so much about him over the years.

For me, the movie lost a little of its energy when it shifted to the political maneuvers undertaken concerning the obtaining of votes to pass the amendment Lincoln wants to push through Congress, but it is integral to the plot, illustrating that Lincoln was pragmatic and willing to play the game to achieve his goals. Because he narrowed the scope of this Lincoln biopic to the last months of the great president’s life, Spielberg was able to cover a lot of ground, and explore the issue of slavery and the war from numerous perspectives.

I do regret watching it through that streaming service. I don’t mind ads, but they popped in randomly, sometimes twenty minutes apart, once five minutes apart, and always right in the middle of scenes. I plan to watch it again, with no commercials. I suggest you do the same.

It lacked a big deal of rhythm but the revision of the history and, specially, the great performance by Day-Lewis makes it a movie worth watching.