I felt DD Lewis was Lincoln! A truly remarkable performance. Spielberg magically creates the 1860's world of heated politics, wheeling & dealing, spinning & compromise. Even though we know how things turn out, suspense nonetheless builds, & we feel the thrill of victory for Lincoln & the life-altering promise of the 13th amendment.

Lewis's nuanced performance offers the rich subtleties of Lincoln's presence- his (usually) quiet, thoughtful, but intensely engaged manner reveals a man who was not only a brilliant orator, but a truly gifted listener.

I left the film impressed (& refreshed) by how bereft of vanity & desire for self-aggrandizement Lincoln was, & how he lived very much in the moment, with a deep appreciation, even a child-like wonder, for the life that unfolded before him.

A crazy quilt patchwork of opportunities & obstacles, passion & steadiness, solitude & relationships, Lincoln is fascinating to catch a glimpse of.

Hope I get to see Lincoln. Figures, bunch of good movies out when I have a hard time getting out. Got to see Argo too. It was pretty good. Maybe Bennifer will start making more good stuff.

I'm spending Thanksgiving with a good friend and she wants to go see it after everyone leaves her house--but so far it's not playing anywhere within driving distance for us.

I don't know about the acting but the visuals look delicious!

We may have to settle for Daniel Craig or hopefully, Daniel Day Lewis.

Lincoln wasn't very hard at all though. A gesture indicating a beaver hat was made and it got guessed in like 15 seconds :).

Surprisingly, when leaving I asked my twenty-three year old daughter what she thought of it and she was not particularly impressed.

I felt the same, although the last twenty minutes were better than the first few hours in my opinion.

We agreed that the issues and personalities were much more complex than as presented and the predictable "gotcha"humor" was pandering to the masses.

That being said, I think Mr. Lewis gave an outstanding performance--as did the actor that portrayed General Grant.

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I was referring to the predicable scenes when the Democrat leaders were "shocked" and outraged when some of their party members voted differently than they anticipated and the predictable smug reactions from the Republicans.

The villian always gets his comeuppance and it's that "gotcha" that seems to be presented the same way in most every film.

I was amazed by the filming of the interior scenes-rooms and the way people lived in them has changed so much. The background was astonishingly real to the time and would have been very difficult to film.

The owner of my house was shot as he stood by the town pump which is in my front yard by rebel snipers from a passing train on their way to Gettysburg. I heard a speaker say there were many rebel scouts in my town , and they mentioned the locations. Cool to think they may have walked by my house.

Lily316, your historic house & furnishings sound charming & wonderful! I love old houses & old things. Thanks for sharing the fate of the original owner...yikes! What stories your whole neighborhood can tell, I'm sure.

Ronalawn, I enjoyed that little story about Washington's portrait too! Very cute. You are a horticulturist? What an amazing profession. Your work must be very rewarding. I adore plants...learning about them, working with them, & of course, they bring such beauty & grace into our lives. Lawns are another story. I've worked my caboose off on this lawn for the 6.5 years we've been here. What a challenge! Especially a Fescue lawn in my neck of the woods, between July & September (as you can imagine, I'm sure!)

As for my screen name...well it's a double entendre, I suppose. A triple one, really. (Depends on the day as to which meaning would be most fitting!) In addition to "stinky" in reference to a disagreeable odor, or to a task poorly executed, in our house, it is a term of endearment.

One may hear me say, "Come give me a kiss, you stinky man!" or, "What are you doing now, you stinky cat?" When I asked my husband what he thought of the new tree I recently bought & decorated, he replied, "It just looks stinky." So, I knew I'd done a good job! LOL!