87 - Lincoln

    Set against the Civil War, Lincoln applies his political will to getting the 13th amendment passed.
    I know it's heresy, but I don't care for Spielberg.  He makes some quality movies, but most of them I have mixed feelings about.  Many of them are worth a viewing, and have some carefully directed sequences that have captured the public's imagination.  But there's something that feels like his movies are about less than art.  They seem like an effort to manipulate audiences into feeling emotions that don't feel earned.
    (Of his director credits, I've seen the episodes of Night Gallery he directed, at least part of Duel, Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T., the Twilight Zone movie, Temple of Doom, his episodes of Amazing Stories, Last Crusade, Hook, Jurassic Park, The Lost World, Minority Report, Catch Me If You Can, The Terminal, War of the Worlds, Crystal Skull, and now Lincoln.)
    Lincoln benefits from having a pretty incredible cast.  And he clearly took his time with the project.  The sets, the costuming, everything look comprehensively great.  But the movie has something that I don't like.
    It's not that there's so much corruption in the House at this point.  I know that's to be expected.  I think it has to do with the way that historical fiction is written and presented.  I have a hard time feeling like every line isn't written for the audience, rather than being an accurate representation.  And the coloring on the movie is a little less vivid than I would expect (although, I suppose most of the movie takes place around January/February).
    There's one other thing that seems wrong to me, but it's a big one.  The movie uses Lincoln as a primary character, but I don't think the movie is about it.  It's mostly a political set piece, focusing on the 13th Amendment.  It's actually strange how little insight I feel into Lincoln as a person.  If anything, I think I like him less because of this movie.  Anyone who spends their time telling anecdotes instead of answering directly isn't being a useful person.  (Sorry, Jesus)
    The movie continues past a natural ending point, and includes an awkward sequence after the passage of the Amendment.  It feels like there's nothing left to talk about.  If the focus had been on Lincoln as a character, that may have worked.