Customer Reviews

D.W. Griffith's 'Abraham Lincoln'

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This film crackles with age, but is still worthy viewing, and is historical for more reasons than just because it is about our 16th president. It was D.W. Griffith's first "talkie", and has a resplendent performance by Walter Huston. It also boasts a script by poet and novelist Stephen Vincent Benet, and beautiful cinematography by Karl Struss, of placid pastoral scenes, exquisitely lit interiors, and depictions of the Civil War.
Huston's marvelous portrayal of Lincoln is broad and strong, with angular body language and a "gentle giant" feeling.

The film starts at Lincoln's birth, through the struggles of his youth and love for Ann Rutledge (Una Merkel), marriage to the eccentric Mary Todd (Kay Hammond), whose mental fragility is subtly demonstrated in how she tries to get out a spot in some fabric, his persistence in keeping the Union together through the war at all costs, and his assassination.
A wonderful "biography" film, and a good example of early filmmaking, the main attraction in this for me is Huston's Lincoln. The old quality of this 1930 film almost enhances the feeling that "this was the man".

This is a very informative video on the great Emancipator. Distributed by Simitar Entertainment, Inc. this video is an excellent introduction to one of our nations greatest presidents. Using stills and what looks to be clips from older movies this video does a good job covering the main events of Abraham Lincoln's life. The movie gives good biographical information about Lincoln's childhood. It touches on his famous debates with Stephen Douglass, the tragic death of several of his close loved ones (mother, sister, two children), his entrance into politics, the Emancipation Proclamation, the Gettysburg Address, an overview of the civil war, and his assasination. I have seen or read about some things that were NOT in this video such as rumors of an assasination plot prior to his taking the oath of office, his invention of a flat river boat, what happened to his wife and son Robert, his dream of his own death, and also the many parallels of his assasination with that of John F. Kennedy. For those seeking accounts about his sincere but introverted faith in Christ, accounts of prayer, his Thanksgiving Proclamation, his love for and usage of the bible in his speeches, his meeting with Frederick Douglass, his incredibly small staff, his desire to put "In God We Trust" on our currency this is not really a video that explores these areas. On a purely secular level this video is a good review of Lincoln's childhood and Presidency.The life of Lincoln contains so many rich lessons of honesty, charity, and endurance that I would reccommend this video and others like it. In a world where honest servant leaders are so seldom found Lincoln's legacy stands like a giant straddling the ages. Aesthetically, in a few places on the video certain shots are used repeatedly and some of the footage looks rather old. On the positive side there are some good stills and the music is the type and variety that you'd expect from the civil war era.

Accused of fostering racism in America after his Masterpiece, "The Birth of a Nation", David "D.W" Griffith takes a shot at making sound (talky) films with Abraham Lincoln (1930). Griffith was heavily influenced by the still photography of Matthew Brady and that influence can be seen in the almost "Newsreel" like feel of this movie. Many have criticized the performance of Hollywood legend Una Merkel (Ann Rutledge). However, a lot of her performance can be attributed to the dialogue and the fact that this was D.W. Griffith's first of only two talking movies. Walter Huston gives an award winning performance as Abraham Lincoln even though he was somewhat handicapped as an actor with the slow pace of the film. You can see that there is an amount of unease with Griffith and the new technology. All told, this is the greatest telling of the life of Abraham Lincoln from a true film master.

What I love here is the historical recreation of scenes from Abe's life depicted in this film. Though its age may be quite obvious, it still holds up as a great landmark from Hollywood's early years. The scene at Ford's Theater is suspenseful, chilling, and upsetting, as we are lead to love this great man whose life is abruptly cut short by an assassin.