Lincoln [2012]

Lincoln is a 2012 production, directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Daniel Day Lewis as the famous American president who changed history. Written by Tony Kushner, it is a story dedicated to the United States, heavy on heartfelt speeches, anecdotes and passionate verbal fights between Congressmen.

Lincoln is not a great film; it has its flaws and, as far as Spielberg movies goes, it's not one of his best. My main problem is the script. As many stated before me, it is long, extremely long, even for 2h and a half. I would give an Oscar to DDL just for the amount of lines, funny stories and speeches he had to memorize and say. I appreciate the discussions of such important topics as slavery and human rights, but it just went on and on, with few interesting scenes (my favorites came towards the end, with Stevens celebrating at home with his special guest and the very end, the fact that they didn't actually show a crucial point of history, but instead showed it from a different perspective). It was very well written, don't get wrong, but a bit boring and long.

When it comes to technical or filmmaking aspects, I have nothing bad or good to say. It looked good, the sets and costumes, especially Abraham's appearance, were realistically done, but I wasn't impressed or attracted by the direction, like in other films.

My highlights of Lincoln were definitely the performances. I realized half way through that this was, indeed, Daniel Day Lewis, not Lincoln. Absolutely fantastic performance, one of the best I have seen- It is a hard part and he nailed it; I respect him just for the number of lines and speeches he had to memorize and do, all completed by the right mannerisms and professionalism. Another standout was David Strathairn as the secretary of state, who was equally calm, honest and gracious, as he was passionate. I can't not mention Sally Fields (terrific in some scenes, like the fight with her husband over Robert and Willie or the reception meeting with Stevens), and Tommy Lee Jones, as the old grumpy man who eventually comes through. Are these last two worthy of Oscars? Not really, but I would be fine with it. Besides that, to top off the superb casting, the rest of the actors involved were top notch, and just by looking at the IMDb list, you know you can expect a well acted film.

In the end, is Lincoln a great film? not really. Does it have amazing performances? Most definitely. Is it worth seeing it just for them? Hmmm.....maybe, plus it is nominated for many awards, so I suggested you watch it for yourself and decides if it's worth the buzz.

There will be blood [2007]

After I saw Little Miss Sunshine last week and was pleasantly surprised by Paul Dano's performance, I decided to watch him in another movie, so this one seemed the perfect answer, as I had it on my list for a long time.

"Ladies and gentlemen", There Will Be Blood is a 2007 written&directed film by Paul Thomas Anderson, about an oilman and his trials and tribulations. Daniel Day Lewis plays Daniel Plainview, a simple, yet very smart guy who works his way into every little town with potential for oil drilling. When he reaches Little Boston, an area suggested by a young, peculiar man named Paul Sunday on a late night, both luck and trouble come his way and influence his actions, as he strives to get more oil from the ground, but also tries to keep his dignity and his son close to him.

I was impressed and excited by several aspects of this amazing movie. First of all, the performances. By now, you should know I am a sucker for character development, interesting or just plain good performances and There Will Be Blood had it, and then some. Two stand out for me and these are Daniel Day Lewis and Paul Dano. The lead man was perfect from the first shot to the very last, showing, one by one, the multiple layers of this fascinating man: his smart side, the caring side (whenever he was around children), the fighter in him or the careless, old, drunken ghost of his successful career; he won an Oscar for this part and it is deserved, indeed. As for Paul Dano, I might be biased, but I think he was absolutely amazing, being quite a revelation as the young pastor with a creepy, but very powerful presence- not only did he stand up and match Lewis' performance, but he dared to act his part in ways not most people do. There are some scenes that prove that: the first church scene, when he performs an "exorcism", the fight between the two on the field, the baptize part (DDL saying "I am a sinner" plus the first words after, supposedly, the devil left him: "There's a pipeline"), the table discussion between Eli and his father, and the most important one, the final scene in the bowling alley room- that just entered my all time favorite scenes list and I will definitely do a separate post just for it.

That leads us to the script; based on a novel by Upton Sinclair, it provides just enough dialogue, drama, action, character and story development, to keep things going and make it more interesting as things progress- solid job by Mister Anderson here, as well.

Another beautiful aspect is, of course, the cinematography. That, combined with probably one of the best musical scores I have ever heard, takes the movie to the next level. The haunting score makes up for a certain lack of dialogue, especially at the beginning or in key scenes and visually, everything is just perfect. (one scene that I remember is the gas explosion) I love Paul Thomas Anderson's style- Boogie Nights is still stuck in my head and I cannot wait to see Magnolia (yes, kill me now, I haven't seen that, either, but I will, promise).

All in all, There Will Be Blood is a fantastic movie that cannot be missed- I highly recommend it. If I will ever make a top 50 or top 100, it would be surely be there.