One Hundred and Fifty Years Ago On This Day

[donquixote99]

Originally Posted by Charles

Another issue I would like to address is whether or not Speilberg got it "right". Has Hollywood ever gotten anything "right".

I finally got around today to reading a number of 'historical criticisms' of the Spielberg movie. Everyone I found agreed that Spielberg got the big stuff right, while fudging some less-important things for the sake of on-screen drama. It is, for example, totally unlikely that two soldiers would have the Gettysburg Address memorized--it was in the 20th century that it became a text for reverential study by schoolkids. And Mary Todd would never have visited the House of Representatives to observe a vote. Etc.

But no one contradicted the films big point, which was that Lincoln so wanted the 13th Amendment that he pursued it even though he knew he could probably have immediate peace with the South, if he did not.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by donquixote99

I finally got around today to reading a number of 'historical criticisms' of the Spielberg movie. Everyone I found agreed that Spielberg got the big stuff right, while fudging some less-important things for the sake of on-screen drama. It is, for example, totally unlikely that two soldiers would have the Gettysburg Address memorized--it was in the 20th century that it became a text for reverential study by schoolkids. And Mary Todd would never have visited the House of Representatives to observe a vote. Etc.

But no one contradicted the films big point, which was that Lincoln so wanted the 13th Amendment that he pursued it even though he knew he could probably have immediate peace with the South, if he did not.

I've read conflicting reviews. Here is one I found to be one of the more interesting.

http://www.salon.com/2012/12/17/spie...lincoln_wrong/

Here is another.

http://www.motherjones.com/mixed-med...elberg-lincoln

However, criticism comes easy, and by most accounts Spielberg's work is an exceptional movie. And as you point out, he pretty much addresses the big issues in a reasonably honest manner.

After all, it's a movie, and one can only do so much in a couple of hours.

Chas