Earlier this week, we brought you some epic home entertainment television releases, as well as a lengthy list of what’s out this week. Now, we’ll tell you about an Academy Award winner offering performances from Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, David Strathairn, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, James Spader, Tommy Lee Jones, Hal Holbrook, John Hawkes, and Jackie Earle Haley. Read on to find out more about the Lincoln Blu-ray set.
Lincoln
Finding an intimate scope among thousands of minute historical details and dozens of characters might seem an impossible task to some or even most, but Steven Spielberg’s portrait of Abraham Lincoln and the passing of the 13th Amendment manages the impossible. From family to politics, fans are invited to join in the bedroom of the 16th President, as well as the ballroom, the carriage, the office, and even Congress.
Showing a place is different than experiencing a time period, and unlike many Spielberg films that focus on the picture and the action onscreen, Lincoln flourishes the most in its use of language. From the fiery portrayals of Mary Todd Lincoln by Fields and Thaddeus Stevens by Jones to the staunch and careful portrayal of Lincoln by Day-Lewis, there’s hardly a line of dialogue in the film that doesn’t offer either gravitas or amusement. Lincoln is as long and frequently winded as several Congressional sessions, but the pleasures the film bequeaths is worth staying put and taking in the overall vision.
Lincoln's stock is currently a little backed up, but you can order a copy over at Amazon.
Best Special Feature: The Blu-ray combo pack also offers a DVD and digital copy, as well as a disc of bonus features. Most of the extras are available on the bonus features disc, but please keep in mind that several extras are also available on the film disc, as well. Most of the extras fuse together historically-oriented information, the various aspects of the filmmaking process, and the perspective of Team of Rivals, the Doris Kearns Goodwin book Lincoln is based on.
The best bonus feature is probably “Crafting the Past,” although all the extras are worth a watch. In the section, the props, costumes and settings are discussed in detail, from the wallpaper to the pieces of paper sitting on each congressman’s desk. Tommy Lee Jones tells a great little story about the cane he uses in the film, but the most impressionable thing about the segment are all the rich moments and details that are so easy to miss without the help of the bonus features.
Other Special Features:
“The Journey to Lincoln”
“A Historic Tapestry: Richmond, Virginia”
“In The Company of Character”
“Living with Lincoln”
“In Lincoln’s Footsteps”
