“I could write shorter sermons but once I get started I get too lazy to stop.”
So apologises Abraham Lincoln after giving a gently meandering speech to a room full of his admiring followers. They respond with good-natured laughter; it’s true, but they don’t mind. Fans of Steven Spielberg will undoubtedly give him similar clemency. For though his historical drama Lincoln is overlong and occasionally lagging, its elegance and importance outweigh its flaws.
Tightly focused on Lincoln’s attempts to pass the Thirteenth Amendment that would abolish slavery, Lincoln unfolds largely within the confines of the White House and congress. This can feel claustrophobic, and is often laden with exposition and legal complexities.
But as the story unfolds, the emotional core of the film shines through. In the lead, Daniel Day-Lewis gives a surprisingly gentle performance, imbued with a warm and paternal fragility. Soft-spoken and slow to anger, his Lincoln is steady in the face of aggressively defiant Democrats and the weaker-resolved members of his own Republican party. Fractured relationships with his grieving and maligned wife (a stunningly pained Sally Field) and son further highlight how Lincoln has become isolated by incalculable burden, both personal and political.
As the arguments for and against equality mirrors current politics, the floor of the House of Representatives becomes an inspiring and engaging spectacle. A cutting but huge-hearted Tommy Lee Jones delivers scene-stealing one-liners, while James Blake Nelson, John Hawkes and James Spader create mischief as dirty-dealing lobbyists.
Rendered in mute colours, the beautifully shot film has a burnished, painterly quality, and the art and costume direction are impeccable. Though John Williams’ score is predictable, featuring his trademark lulling strings and plaintive brass, it heightens the tale’s slow-burning inspiration.
Though romanticised and occasionally bloated, Spielberg’s sermon has a grace and subtle beauty to it. Every word may not grip you, but the overall message will.