Lincoln

4 pipes out of 4

Daniel Day-Lewis tackles one of the most ominous historical figures of all time, Abraham Lincoln, and does so masterfully. He fully deserved the Oscar that he was given and the film itself deserved Best Picture instead of Argo. Day-Lewis humanized Lincoln for the common man after centuries of heroification. He brings out Lincoln’s faults showing us that Lincoln was a normal man pushed into abnormal situations. What was truly amazing about the film is that it focused on the little known aspect of the 13^th amendment freeing all slaves in the United States. Because Lincoln was assassinated before he could sign the amendment it is often thought that he had little to do with it. While Lewis does a wonderful job as Lincoln he is absolutely engulfed with superb supporting actors from Sally Field as Mary Lincoln to Tommy Lee Jones as Senator Thaddeus Stevens with many in between.  The script is both dramatic and witty, relieving tension with a snide remark or long winded story by Lincoln. The movie follows Lincoln in the final months of the Civil War and how he manipulated the Senate as well as the South in order to get the 13^th amendment passed. There are a number of instances that crack the indestructible moral man shell of Lincoln leaving the question did he do the right thing? Do the ends justify the means? Steven Spielberg skillfully directed the cluster of big name actors to get everything out of them, even after some might already be in the moonlight of their careers. Sitting at a whopping 2 ½ hours with only a brief battle in the beginning, it might seem to get a bit lengthy but the history and intrigue draw you in from start to finish.

The Last of the Mohicans

4 pipes out of 4

At first glance The Last of the Mohicans is simply another white take on the Native American story, glorifying the white and keeping the Native American story hidden. Upon closer inspection it helps share both the plight of the Native American while placating the mostly white audience. Daniel Day-Lewis plays a white man who was adopted by a Mohican father after both his parents were murdered at a young age. While Lewis does a masterful job as he always does in his films, it is his Native American father and brother who steal the show. Their portrayal is both honest and heartbreaking, giving the audience a partial view into the Native American colonial life, caught between war and famine, slowly being eradicated. The true relationship to watch in this film is not Day-Lewis’s character Hawkeye and the daughter of a British Colonel Cora (Madeleine Stowe), but the Native American brother Uncas (Eric Schweig) and Cora’s younger sister Alice (Jodhi May). One is obvious that will happen while the other develops slowly and with subtle cues, giving us hope for the future between Whites and Native Americans. If we take our cues from Alice and Uncas then a resolution can be found between these two parties. The film develops around the French and Indian war in the Colonies prior to revolution. There are a number of instances where the film plants the seeds of why the colonies declared independence, for instance the inability to leave their post while their homes and families were burned and murdered. The love relationship between Hawkeye and Cora seemed slightly rushed but the message behind the film and the development of the relationships between the other characters far exceeds it. The development of the villain character Magua (Wes Studi) was extremely well done in that while remaining the villain and not seeing reason, the audience gets a view into what has caused him to become this way. The Magua character demonstrates that there are no clean hands when it comes to the Native Americans be they French, British, Colonists or even Native American.

Philadelphia

4 pipes out of 4

A 1993 best picture winner and it completely deserves it. This is easily the best movie that I have ever seen. The acting was absolutely superb and could not have been done any better by any other actors. Philadelphia follows lawyer Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks), who is gay and has AIDS, is suing his former law firm for wrongful termination. He contracts a former opponent lawyer Joe Miller (Denzel Washington) to take his case to court. Antonio Banderas also costars in the film as Andrew’s partner causing an interesting dynamic between these three big names. Philadelphia brings to the forefront a huge issue that was being dealt with throughout the 70’, 80’s with the misconception of AIDS. Andrew was fired from his job because he contracted AIDS and his work ethic as well as personal life is called into question. What I like best about Philadelphia is that Miller begins the movie with a hatred of homosexuals and fear of AIDS but as the movie progresses we see him to begin to change his beliefs. He is not changed completely by the end which ads a sense of realism to the film. The issue of homosexuality is not the only thing that is called into question for it causes the audience to question all of our views on whether we discriminate in some way and if we were taught to do so by society. One of the best scenes of the film is when Hanks and Washington are going over Hanks’ Q&A of the trial for the next day. As Washington continues to ask Hanks questions, Hanks diverts them by asking Washington his own questions about beliefs. Don’t get me wrong, this is a very difficult movie to watch and at times is quite depressing, it also doesn’t help that you can pretty much guess what happens to Beckett at the end of the movie. This will be the first movie that I have ever rated as a 5 pipes out of 5 and it was completely unexpected. I had heard that it was a very good film but I had no idea how good it was. It will be very difficult for any movie to top the masterpiece that is Philadelphia.