“Lincoln” (2012) is a Steven Spielberg film about the passing of the Thirteenth Amendment, the one that freed the slaves. It stars Daniel Day-Lewis as Abraham Lincoln, Sally Field as his wife and Tommy Lee Jones as Radical Republican Congressman Thaddeus Stevens. Gloria Reuben plays Elizabeth Keckley, Mrs Lincoln’s dressmaker and friend.
Executive summary: “The Help” as costume drama – though Daniel Day-Lewis is amazing as Lincoln.
Best line: When Gloria Reuben says to Lincoln:
White people don’t want us here – any of them. Do you?
Like the “The Help”, Participant Media lists this as one of its films about social action. And like “The Help” it rewrites history as a story about a well-meaning white person, who is not one bit racist, helping blacks by fighting against n-word-using white racists – while blacks largely take a back seat.
While “The Help” had fleshed-out black characters, this film has none. Gloria Reuben comes the closest – she is listed 17th in the credits. In this film about freeing slaves not a single slave appears.
On the other hand it does show black soldiers in the opening scene – so the Helpless Darkies in this one are not quite so helpless.
Although the film takes great pains to make Daniel Day-Lewis look like Lincoln, talk like Lincoln and walk like Lincoln, it whitewashes Lincoln.
In real life Lincoln used the n-word. Spielberg’s Lincoln does not – even though others in the film do.
In real life Lincoln said stuff like this:
… there is a physical difference between the white and black races which I believe will for ever forbid the two races living together on terms of social and political equality.
Spielberg’s Lincoln never says stuff like that. He is for equal rights! This is no longer history, but fantasy. Lincoln was against giving blacks the vote till the last week of his life, and even then it would only be for veterans and the “very intelligent” – Jim Crow stuff.
In real life Lincoln was for ethnic cleansing. He wanted to send blacks away after the war – till Frederick Douglass (not in the film) talked him out of it.
Douglass 11 years after Lincoln’s death said:
President Lincoln was a white man, and shared the prejudices common to his countrymen towards the coloured race.
Racism is not a matter of some misguided whites, like in a Hollywood film. Most whites are not Basically Good, as this film would have you suppose. Most are racist, morally compromised. Lincoln was no different.
What sets Lincoln apart was that he fought against his own racism, against his fallen nature, and did right in spite of it. Instead of giving into it and calling it right. That is the story that went untold. It would be far truer, far more interesting and far more helpful as a model for social action. Instead we get yet another feel-good White Saviour fantasy flick.
See also:
The movie troupes of rewriting history and white saviors never ever stop, and it won’t as long as white men rule Hollywood, or should I say Holly-white.
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When it comes to films about white people, oppressing minority races, they always sugar coat it to the least degree.
Remember the color purple? Whites in that movie played less of a role in the lives of blacks, it was more about black people themselves that caused pain but not white people, even though in the time period that the color purple was set, white people was the dominant source of black peoples pain and suffering and oppression.
Lincoln is more of the same, white self serving tripe, so white people can feel good about their whiteness and live life white guilt free and then during a race debate, bring up Lincoln” you see, not all white people are racist, even Our 16th president was against slavery and he set blacks free.” lol
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i think lincoln was only for setting the slaves free to get back at the south and not out of the goodness of his heart.He had the mentality of northerners that thought blacks shouldn’t be slaves but they shouldn’t be equal either. here is a quote from his1858 speech in charleston.“I will say, then, that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of bringing about in any way the social and political equality of the white and black races—that I am not, nor ever have been, in favor of making voters or jurors of Negroes, nor of qualifying them to hold office, nor to intermarry with white people; and I will say in addition to this, that there is a physical difference between the white and black races which I believe will forever forbid the two races living together on terms of social and political equality. And inasmuch as they cannot so live, while they do remain together there must be the position of superior and inferior, and I, as much as any other man, am in favor of having the superior position assigned to the white race.”
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so as u can see lincoln was just lookin out for his own a real american white man that was agianst slavery and did things to get rid of it was John Brown.
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Does anyone think that lincoln was a product if his time? I mean if he did feel that a man, owning another man is wrong, therefore freeing the salves but still harbored, a racist mindset but felt he couldn’t do much more then free black slaves but not allow them to vote and equality.
I do feel that if Lincoln was president in a more recent point in time, he would have been more liberal, than he was.
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*cue fountain of vomit*
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Indeed, it would have been good to have a more accurate depiction of Lincoln. Whose idea in the production of the movie was it to make him more white-washed? Some of the sponsors or investors?
and, if you or we or anyone else find gross inaccuracies in the film, we have to make it a point to point them out.
Well, I hope it shows here on the screen some time.
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Haven’t even seen it, and already am giving it side eye. How do you make a film about Lincoln’s move to free the slaves and not include Frederick Douglass?
Abagond said:
And see? Characters that exhibit that kind of internal conflict, who are faced with (and have to confront) such dilemmas, that’s what makes good drama. Had the film actually taken that route, it would have made for much better storytelling.
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I am sure this film will win lots of academy awards Daniel -Day Lewis is a beast and on top of his game as an actor, I have no desire to watch this tripe.
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The Gloria Reuben character is a non-factor.
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I am disappointed to find out that Lincoln was essentially a racist! They make him look so noble in the history books.
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And he doesn’t even slay any vampires.
Okay, but seriously, way too much historical revisionism in this piece of garbage. I’m sure it will win a million awards anyway.
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[…] I did read one negative review by Abagond: […]
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“Most whites are not Basically Good, as this film would have you suppose. Most are racist, morally compromised.”
And That’s why the film was made the why it is – “Instead we get yet another feel-good White Saviour fantasy flick.”
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@ Sondis
I don’t think The Color Purple is a good example to use here since it was based on a book written by a black woman, Alice Walker.
Also, people should read the Lincoln Letter. He wanted to to send blacks out of the country because he said there would never be racial harmony. I can’t say he was wrong. The annoying part is how they try to sugarcoat this man as if he were some type of hero-saint.
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@Wilson
I hear you. I remember being a little kid in elementary school and liking Lincoln. I really and truly believed that lie about him being the liberator of the slaves. It wasn’t until I got older and started reading up on him. He didn’t really respect our humanity any more than the other whites of his (or ours to be truthfully honest) time.
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A friend sent me a copy of the review of Spielberg’s Lincoln. He sent it because I had posted a similar review, albeit shorter, on FB. Those of you who want to attribute the revisionist view of history to whites making themselves look good should take a look at other films of historical people and events. It’s a shame that film makers think they can not make a historical movie based on facts when those facts are an important element of the event. Too many people actually believe what they saw in JFK (conspiracy), Titanic (just ridiculous), The Last Samurai (a violent, drunken, thieving group who terrorized Japanese commoners – not noble at all), Gladiator (Emperor was actually respected statesman), Bonnie & Clyde (2-bit little-known thieves), etc. The entire genre is insufferable to many.
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@Mbeti
Personally I like to feel that all people are “basically good” though they may possess varying degrees of insanity warping their concept of what “good” is.
I haven’t seen the movie myself, but the fact that the real Lincoln possessed the same insanities as most white men of his era doesn’t make him a bad person. Despite the fact that he was as crazy as everyone else he did manage to do something that was actually good. It would be rather stupid to expect him or anyone to be a perfect model of humanity so much morally superior to all of the masses of mere mortals.
And the fact that the movie got it wrong is no surprise. Movies aren’t supposed to be like real life where people are people and there isn’t any real narrative or story lines. In movies people are symbols meant to represent whatever ideals they want represented and used to tell whatever story the creators want to be told. Things are always going to be simplified for the purpose of the message so that people aren’t confused about what they’re supposed to think about a person.
If they had Lincoln say “Nigger”* then the whole story would seem a whole lot more muddled. Lots of people would feel confused, offended or even angered at Lincoln’s portrayal. Reality doesn’t have a clear plot structure so facts are always going to have to be bent to make them work for the plot structure a movie needs.
*(I’m not going to type out “the N-Word” when the word itself is being discussed, that just seems childish. I’ve come to the point where I’m pretty sure that there’s no inherent magical power to the word.)
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Oh, man. Sorry to hear about this – but hey, I’m not surprised in the slightest. I was interested in this movie mainly for Daniel Day-Lewis’ portrayal and I’ll probably watch it for it because I like his acting… But this is not surprising.
I must say liked some Speilberg’s earlier work, but some of his latest movies were a disappointment. I hate propaganda movies, which sucks because I kind of like historical movies and I can live with some inaccuracy but hey, blatant propaganda makes me vomit.
I admit, I don’t know that much about American history so I won’t pretend I’m an expert here, but still.
The funny thing is that it would make for much better character development to portray Lincoln’s internal struggle and to portray him as a flawed individual with his own prejudice. But I suppose it’s impossible for Hollywood to make a movie in which a national hero is not 100%
As a (non-US) viewer, I’d love to see a movie in which whites are portrayed realistically, in which it’s perfectly common to be an ok person (you don’t steal, murder or want violence) but still have racial prejudice (being a “color blind” racist). But no. Hollywood loves to portray racism, but under strict rules: all racist have to be of the mega-evil, obvious, KKK style, AND there must be many whites who are 100% anti-racist to tell them how wrong they are. God forbid there is a flawed white individual who is not mega-evil or violent but still displays racist tendencies. Hollywood never displays “colour-blind” type of racism. Never displays those who believe “we all bleed red, it doesn’t matter if you’re white, black, green or purple”.
PS- Abagond,
Is there a post about this one (the way Hollywood portrays white racism), and if not, would you be interested in writing one? I think it’s an interesting subject.
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Oh, and what do you think: would a movie in which Lincoln uses the n-word be possible in Hollywood?
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Thanks Abagond, you just sealed the deal for me. I’m waiting for Netflix 😀
@Cleonette agreed regarding The Color Purple.
@ Sondis-But the scene where Sophia was asked to be the white lady’s maid was a pivotal scene of white racism and play quite poignantly on the big screen.
I think for Hollywood to really have a “come to Jesus meeting” regarding their racism is a pipe dream. It will never happen. Spike Lee tried via “Do the Right Thing” and you all know that Hollywood is colorblind-only sees GREEN!
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@ Mira
It is worth seeing for Daniel Day-Lewis alone, but do not think it is accurate history.
Other things they made up or changed:
1. It shows Lincoln pulling dirty tricks to get the amendment passed, like using Seward, his Secretary of State, to promise patronage jobs to outgoing Democrats. That is made up. We have no idea how Lincoln got those extra Democratic votes. The patronage thing is a guess.
2. The film shows Thaddeus Stevens, who was in favour of equal political rights for blacks, in bed with his black housekeeper. Again, we have no proof of that. It is something his enemies accused him of.
3. The relationship between Lincoln and wife, as bad as it was in the film, was in fact way worse. On the other hand, the film makes you think she is maybe half mad, but that is a matter of dispute among historians.
4. It shows Lincoln having a dream about the 13th Amendment. He did have such a dream, but he had right before his generals were about to win a battle. It had nothing to do with the amendment.
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@ Mira:
Good suggestion. Thanks.
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Oh, don’t worry. I don’t trust movies when it comes to history/information. I don’t trust news, let alone fiction. But it’s too bad when you have to cringe through so many bad things to enjoy positive aspects of a movie (acting, etc.)
It’s really bad, because movies we’re talking about (Lincoln, the Help) are not some indie, low budget projects nobody heard of. Heck, they are not necessarily bad movies when it comes to talent involved or artistic merit. Which sucks even worse, because you see all this talent and effort invested in a questionable material. It’s worse than making a low-budget racist crap fest, mainly because this one will reach more people.
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Good suggestion. Thanks.
Some points to consider:
– Racism is always told from white POV and the way whites overcoming the horror of it by learning to be better people.
– Blacks and other POC characters are in the background (at best – sometimes a movie about racism doesn’t even pass the Bechdel test for race), and they mostly serve to inspire a white person and to make him/her into a mighty whitey/better person/learn a lesson.
– Racists are always of the over the top, violent, KKK clan. They are 100% evil even in other aspects of their character and there are just no redeeming qualities about them.
– The main character is a 100% good, non-racist white person.
– Racists are in a minority; most whites are “nice people”.
– Bonus if the movie portrays black on white violence, too, in a way that makes it seem that it’s even ground.
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I saw the movie. It was pretty good. I wonder why mainstream black director’s and writer’s don’t release movies about racism from the black perspective.
Most “black” movies are either romantic comedies or inner city gang movies. I prefer the gang movies to the romantic comedies.
Does anyone know of any recent “black” movies about racism?
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I read Spielberg originally thought of making this about Lincoln’s relationship with Frederick Douglass, but then decided against it.
I think one of the reasons they removed his racism and made Lincoln seem a lot nicer than he is is simply because it’s a film about American history, therefore it must be patriotic. To my knowledge as a non-USian, admitting and owning up to anything negative about the US and its history is always considered non-patriotic.
Mira, I find your suggestion very interesting.
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[…] Read original story here. […]
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@ Mira
Very good comments.
+1
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Damn, Damn, Damn (“Good Times”). I knew if Speilberg got ahold of this, Lincoln and all of his complexities would not come through. This should have been a Martin Scorsese or Spike Lee film…seriously. It is a gritty subject…needed a gritty director. I am a bit of a historian and I’ve read biographies of Lincoln and his family. Lincoln was a very complex leader for a very complex time. His attitudes did evolve….slowly. Now, a men who would be great character studies would be Hubert Humphrey and LBJ. They were bold men with political capital to spend and did it for the right reasons. I have resisted seeing this movie based on my suspicions but I admit I have been curious. Now I will wait until DVD land.
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@ solesearch
There is one that I can remember that focused on the systematic racism. I will have to remember the name, but it should be in my history of netflix movies. I will get back to you when I find it.
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@solesearch Here’s one for you, Something that the Lord Made. It takes place in the Jim Crow south. A true story of medical pioneers. One celebrated, one over looked. (Alan Rickman) is cheif surgeon Alfred Blalock at Johns Hopkins University.Pioneering techniquesin heart surgery.Blalock makes the acquaintance of Vivien Thomas (Mos Def) a carpenter hired to work at the University, and to his surprise is a very intelligent man also interested in medicine. Good film. True story. pissed me off. Check it out.
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[…] "What sets Lincoln apart was that he fought against his own racism, against his fallen nature, and did right in spite of it. Instead of giving into it and calling it right." – MORE – […]
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Here is a review of this movie from a (white) racial realist: http://www.amren.com/features/2012/11/spielbergs-lincoln/ It is very interesting to note that where you see “yet another feel-good White Saviour fantasy flick”, the amren author calls out “The Sacred Black Experience” and “noble Negroes”. However, there are some agreements by both sides, particularly concerning this film’s lack of portrayal of Lincoln’s true ideology concerning blacks. Ultimately, this flick should be seen for what it is: Fantasy disguised as history, produced by jews, for a jewish-controlled society. Not that they control everything, of course; just the movies. And newspapers. And prime-time TV, the worldwide banking system, most fortune 500 board rooms, and Congress. It’s time to start being honest, and this movie fails.
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@mary burrell I’ll check it out and force my husband to watch it since he tricked me into watching the Machine Gun Preacher. Horrible horrible movie, by the way. It is the quintessential White Savior movie.
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Jefe, the whitewash was the idea of the writer, Tony Kushner, who, oddly enough, really wrote the film about Obama (as justification for political compromise instead of radicalism)–
http://jacobinmag.com/2012/11/lincoln-against-the-radicals-2/
As that piece also explains, the movie’s erasure of historical black agency is…yeah, unsurprising.
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@ Aspergum
Excellent link. Thank you!
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🙂
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[…] Spielberg’s Lincoln (abagond.wordpress.com) […]
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Abagond – what did you think of Beasts of the Southern Wild?
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Abagond. Have you seen the BBC America drama show Copper, about life in New York and Five Points during the civil war? If time and interest, maby you can you do a review, or Mira maby. It would be interesting reading.
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I have not seem Copper or Beasts of the Southern Wild.
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@ solesearch
Spike Lee’s “Bamboozled”:
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the man resented black people he was a typical white supremacist. Why does anyone feel the need to make a movie about that unless to convince others the next generation of the Lincoln myth I think the republicans are preparing for the next election with tripe like this
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This is what I’m talking about. Thank y’all. People saying this man was great. What made him so great? From what i can see he was a racist peace of s— who said blacks are inferior to whites and didnt believe in quality between blacks and whites.
The movie is overexaggerated. Typical hollywood. It makes Lincoln look like a saint. And the abolitionist are the ones who really made the 13th amendment. Not Lincoln. He just helped.
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I think it is a bout the time for the black film community to get their gear together and do similar movie about Fredric Douglass. And about every other black american person who has changed history. Getting the money should not be that difficult. After all, there are some very wealthy sports super stars who could easily loan a mill here another there. Getting twenty to invest in to such movie would raise 20 million alone. And that would guarantee independent movie, written, directed etc. by the black movie makers.
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[…] Spielberg’s Lincoln (abagond.wordpress.com) […]
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I am not going to say Lincoln was a saint… but if you were a white politician in his time would you have pushed as hard as he did to get the thirteenth amendment passed? Would you have issued the emancipation proclamation? Would you have sent countless fellow whites to their death in this pursuit? Would you have split the country? How much political capital did he use up to get this done and in what climate? Would you be willing to be so hated that you risk your life and your family’s? Did he die for what he did in an assassination?
In other words is what he did during the time he did it in possibly an extraordinary act? And should many countless people in bondage at the time and those that would have been born into bondage be thankful?
I for one am thankful Lincoln put us down this course and that I have had the opportunity to marry my wife…something that would never had been possible if nothing had changed… furthermore I also realize rationally that none of this would be possible if it had not been for the initial hard fought for steps Lincoln paved.
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In addition look how many whites voted for the amendment during the time it was passed. PERHAPS this is pure speculation on my part… PERHAPS there were and still are a great great great number of whites who believe in their heart that blacks ARE equal, that they are human beings and should be treated as such, and perhaps there are many of us that are not racists.
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Good stuff
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Great!
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Put “Avalon” in the same category – just blue people instead of black people.
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Re: More Every Day’s comments. This person is himself a racist,
only his racism is directed against Jews rather than blacks. This
is the type of thinking that led to the Nazi death camps. Racism
is Racism whether it is directed against African Americans, Jews,
Hispanics, Asian Americans, Native Americans, Irish Americans or
Roma Americans (“gypsies”–a perjorative term).
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Reblogged this on Project ENGAGE and commented:
Did Spielberg depict Abe Lincoln well in the movie? Compare and contrast to other sources.
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