FLIX!
In the opening sequence I thought to myself "Wow, they did a nice job on making Daniel Day Lewis look eerily like Lincoln." And that was the last time I ever thought of Daniel Day Lewis. He became Lincoln. He walked the way I always imagined Lincoln walked. He talked the way I always imagined Lincoln talked. I felt like I was let in the various rooms with Lincoln.
The movie takes a look at the last 6 months of Lincoln's life. It examines the toll the war was having on him, the stress caused by a wife still grieving over the loss of their son Willie, and his efforts to have the 13th Amendment to the Constitution passed.
If you think the political wrangling that we currently have going on Congress is anything new, you need to see this film. It has been going on since George Washington took the Oath of Office.
Daniel Day Lewis (My Left Foot, Last of the Mohicans, The Crucible) has never phoned in a performance in his life. He didn't want to do this role. Leonardo DiCaprio called him and told him that he really needed to do this one - and it got him to take the part. I, for one, am glad he did. But Daniel Day Lewis is not the only great actor present. Sally Field is wonderful as Mary Todd Lincoln. Tommy Lee Jones is masterful as Thaddeus Stephens. And there is a host of actors I admire very much filling out every nook and cranny of this film.
The screenplay was written by Tony Kushner (Angels in America), and he LOVES to hear the sound of words he's written. Yes, this film is a bit wordy. It is also cut a little fatter than it needs to be. Showtime was 9:15 and we got out at midnight. That is closer to the actual 6 months than it needs to be.
But the bottom line is this. Lincoln will win Best Picture Oscar for 2012. Period. Why? Well, although the Academy doesn't like Spielberg (Stephen directed this one), they love Abraham Lincoln - maybe the most Liberal President we've ever had. It is much like when the so-so film Ghandi won Best Picture and director David Lean acknowledged that most voters were not voting for the movie Ghandi, but for Ghandi himself. The same will happen this year. The voters will be acknowledging their love for the visionary Lincoln more than for the movie. But the film has many beautiful moments and is worthy of every accolade it can get.
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Shaken, Not Stirred
I did something Friday night I had never done before. I saw a James Bond movie. "Skyfall" was playing at the local cineplex and I guess I just figured it was time. The franchise has been around 50 years after all.
Ian Fleming dreamed up 007 in the late 50's, but it was 1962 before the first Bond movie "Dr. No" hit the silver screen. To put it into perspective, other things of that era: Kennedy was President, John Glenn orbited the Earth, the Rolling Stones were just getting together, Dr. King hadn't had his dream yet, nobody knew where Viet Nam was, and the Beatles were a full year and a half away of appearing on Ed Sullivan. That was a while ago, and if Bond can last that long, there must be something to him.
There have been more than a few Bonds, and most older folks still swear by Sean Connery. Although my wife swears by Pierce Brosdon. At any rate, for me there is only Daniel Craig. He is a gifted actor and approaches this like it's a serious acting endeavor and therefore is wonderful. Plot? An old disgruntled employee. And in this one, no special gadgets. Just a radio tracker and a handgun that only his hand can shoot. But still this flick is lots of fun.
UPROAR ALERT: In one scene, Bond is seen drinking a ..... perish the thought....a beer (albeit Heineken which for my money ain't really beer).
I went in knowing that this was the franchise that spawned the action flick. I realized that the "Die Hard's" and the "Terminator's" and the "Rambo" movies would not exist if it weren't for Bond.
I enjoyed myself. And that is all I ask out of the hour and 40 minutes when I've dropped $9 a head. Daniel takes this seriously and actually puts in a performance, so I encourage you all to see it. And yes, he utters the cornerstones of the lexicon: "Shaken, Not Stirred", and "Bond, James Bond."
Ian Fleming dreamed up 007 in the late 50's, but it was 1962 before the first Bond movie "Dr. No" hit the silver screen. To put it into perspective, other things of that era: Kennedy was President, John Glenn orbited the Earth, the Rolling Stones were just getting together, Dr. King hadn't had his dream yet, nobody knew where Viet Nam was, and the Beatles were a full year and a half away of appearing on Ed Sullivan. That was a while ago, and if Bond can last that long, there must be something to him.
There have been more than a few Bonds, and most older folks still swear by Sean Connery. Although my wife swears by Pierce Brosdon. At any rate, for me there is only Daniel Craig. He is a gifted actor and approaches this like it's a serious acting endeavor and therefore is wonderful. Plot? An old disgruntled employee. And in this one, no special gadgets. Just a radio tracker and a handgun that only his hand can shoot. But still this flick is lots of fun.
UPROAR ALERT: In one scene, Bond is seen drinking a ..... perish the thought....a beer (albeit Heineken which for my money ain't really beer).
I went in knowing that this was the franchise that spawned the action flick. I realized that the "Die Hard's" and the "Terminator's" and the "Rambo" movies would not exist if it weren't for Bond.
I enjoyed myself. And that is all I ask out of the hour and 40 minutes when I've dropped $9 a head. Daniel takes this seriously and actually puts in a performance, so I encourage you all to see it. And yes, he utters the cornerstones of the lexicon: "Shaken, Not Stirred", and "Bond, James Bond."
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