Remembered as the Savior of the Union; Abraham Lincoln is one of America's most revered presidents. There have been tens of thousands of books published about him since his death; but he has proved to be a surprisingly daunting subject for filmmakers. Despite a wealth of biographical material; relatively few full-length motion pictures have taken the man and his life as a primary subject. In this detailed study; Brian J. Snee provides a sweeping overview of the cinematic representations of the sixteenth president from the silent era up to Steven Spielberg's Lincoln (2012)―a film which; he argues; marks a seismic shift in the way Hollywood presents the Great Emancipator on-screen.Snee focuses on six of the most popular and influential movies and TV miniseries of the twentieth century to address the life of Abraham Lincoln―The Birth of a Nation (1915); Abraham Lincoln (1930); Young Mr. Lincoln (1939); Abe Lincoln in Illinois (1940); Sandburg's Lincoln (1974–1976); and Gore Vidal's Lincoln (1988). Snee examines how each work has contributed to public memory of the president; addressing issues of production; textual construction; and audience reception; as well as their contemporary historical contexts and underlying cultural theory.The absence of video and other recording technology during Lincoln's lifetime forever shrouds his mannerisms; thought processes; and interactions with his peers and advisers. That man; Snee argues; is lost to history. This fascinating book offers a revealing and groundbreaking assessment of how Hollywood has imagined and reimagined America's greatest president on-screen; contributing to the popular image and myth of the legendary man.
#297846 in Books The University Press of Kentucky 1994-01-25 1994-01-25Ingredients: Example IngredientsOriginal language:EnglishPDF # 1 .70 x 5.94 x 8.16l; .91 #File Name: 0813118581184 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy CustomerInformative it so far; though the subject matter is heartbreaking.
