Weekend Movie Reviews: 007 is 000 Lincoln is a 10

007 scores 000 for the recent movie "Skyfall."

The hype from the Olympics with Daniel Craig, 007 aka James Bond and the Queen was the only memorable aspect of this 007 #FAIL. The special effects at the beginning were interesting but didn't quite tie in with any message. 

The film shows an aging 007 using alcohol and pills to push through the pain of his former war wounds.  Judi Dench his former handler, M, puts in her last appearance in this role and should be thankful it is over.

The Expendables 2 was a film with aging superheros, Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Scwarzenegger and Bruce Willis and they pulled off making fun or their follies on assignment to take out a corrupt military leader and a rogue CIA operative on a Latin American island.  The characters knew they were getting older and audience expected a comedy with the action.

My expectations of James Bond, a super hero was certainly not met in "Skyfall."  I kept waiting for it to get better and that just plain did not happen.  Had we left in the first hour we could have gotten our money back but loving James Bond, we kept thinking things would change and it just didn't happen.  I think people don't want to believe that the movie release for the 50th Anniversay of James Bond would be so bad and are still going to the box office!  Believe me, don't go see "Skyfall" save your money for Lincoln! 

Director, Steven Spielberg, has done a masterful job in sharing the passion of the 16th President of the United States of America. President Abraham Lincoln's vision and zeal for equality set the bar for human activism.  The journey to passing the 13th amendment changed the course of history and set a precedent for equal treatment which is portrayed in the movie "Lincoln." this film will have you reaching far inside yourself to deep places that will touch your emotions.

Democracy was clarified in Lincoln's the Gettysburg address "Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal…………that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth."

The film depicts the then "radical republicans" and "dumbo crats" of 1865.  The movie will have you laughing and maybe rolling in the isles because of the similarities identified 147 years later.  The shoe is on the other foot with the flag raising idealism however, the rules of engagement appear to be timeless.  The fact that the audience clapped at the end gives you an idea of why you will want to see this movie right away. 

Euclidean geometry was a concept, Abraham Lincoln appreciated and helped defined his idealism.  Lincoln developed his command of logic, reason and argument both as an attorney and political theorist from this theory. The mathematical concepts make it easy to understand Lincoln's approach. The supreme mathematical logical system of Euclid's Geometry was a testament to the power of human reason to deduce truth.  The repeated postulate shared in the movie, one of five axioms with truth that is self-evident  "things that are equal to the same thing are also equal to one another," or "the whole is greater than the part." Lincoln believed the truths of Euclidean physics were as valid as mathematical logic..,.. he believed, lived and fought for the principle, we are all equal to one another.

The story line explores the dilemma of the validity of the Emancipation Proclamation without the constitutional amendment to enforce the proclamation. Lincoln used his constitutional authority to declare that all slaves were free, legally liberating more than 3 million people.

Screenwriter, Tony Kushner has delivered a storyline that is sure to win Academy awards. Daniel Day-Lewis as Lincoln, has immersed into the character so realistic you will believe Lincoln is right there on the big screen.  His acting ability as husband to mourning, wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, Sally Field devastated at the loss of a son and the challenge of another son wanting to go to war struggling with a mental breakdown and the responsibility as the first lady is epic.  The character shows Lincoln as a storyteller and clever raconteur who loves his family, his country and all mankind.  

Tommy Lee Jones, as Representative Thaddeus Stevens, radical Republican from Pennsylvania gives the performance of a lifetime as best supporting actor.

James Spader adds an incredible dimension to the cast with his powerful representation of W.N. Bilbo, one of the three lobbyists charged with securing the needed votes to pass the 13th amendment to the US Constitution. 

Memorable moments include the significance of George Washington's picture in an English bathroom, no spoiler alert here, just watch for it! 

Thought provoking concepts included in the film include:

• Marriage
• Forgiveness
• Death
• Passion
• Ethics
• Politics
• Separation Anxiety
• Conflict resolution
• Family division
• 'Mental illness
• Idealism
• Parenting
• Diversity
• Humor
• Euclidean geometry
• Hunger Games

The movie explores the journey to pass the 13th amendment to the US Constitution which states:

Amendment XIII

Section 1.

Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2.

Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

"Lincoln,"   is a must see movie if you are to enjoy the Academy Awards and feel the energy of history with taking the lessons of 147 years ago and applying it today.  The film will move you to learn more about America, the constitution, special interest groups and how the political system works today.  Thousands of people died. families were destroyed, the Southern way of life and their economy changed for ever. President Abraham Lincoln set the example that changed a way of life and history for the United States of America.