Lincoln

Two weeks ago I saw Steven Spielberg's recent movie, Lincoln, and came away impressed. Sally Fields did an admirable job playing Mary Todd Lincoln, and Tommy Lee Jones played Thaddeus Stevens, but it was Daniel Day-Lewis, playing Abraham Lincoln, who was mesmerizing, riveting. It was if I was watching the real Abraham Lincoln, with all of his diffidence, hesitations, awkward mannerisms, ugliness, and squeaky voice fully displayed, with warts and beard and over-sized ears.

Critics agree that Day-Lewis should win the “Best Actor” award. The movie critic in The New Yorker, Hendrik Hertzberg, was...