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source: Killing Lincoln

That's a better title for this documentary. Sub-titled: "the death of Lincoln" There are moments in this story where no one alive can know what was really said or done. Those moments are filled in with heroic dialogue by Booth. Disgusting. The two stars were for some details I didn't know about.

I think that this is a good movie. As for myself not being a huge documentary fan, that aspect of he film wasn't so much to my liking. I wish it had been more of a movie with a plot and storyline, without all of the narrating. However for the purpose that I was to watch it (a history class assignment) I learned a lot through it, and despite my negative feelings toward he narration, Tom Hanks does a wonderful job setting the viewer up and giving them a sufficient amount of background knowledge to be able to understand the happenings of the movie. Also at some points throughout the movie, the way that certain scenes were filmed seemed a bit shaken almost, unprofessional-like. Now whether that was done on purpose or not, I was not very pleased with that. I did like the way that before a new event began in the movie, or a new scene, the time, place and date were shown. Again providing the viewer with background information so they don't get too lost in following the story. As for the story itself, the story of the assassination of President Lincoln, in my opinion, was told very well through this movie. I liked the way that it seemed to take an objective approach and just told the story how it happened, without seeming to really advocate for either side more than the other. It was very informative and I thought that the casting was done well too. John Wilkes Booth's character especially fit, I think, because he just seems creepy the whole way through the movie, with his mustache and the journal entries he writes of his self justification for the terrible thing he has done. All in all I think that this movie was a good movie, and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to know more about the story of Lincoln's assassination or who particularly enjoy historical documentaries.

Back in the early Seventies I researched a college history class assignment on the assassination of Lincoln and was surprised about everything I learned at the time that wasn't common knowledge. "Killing Lincoln" is even more of an eye opener as it delves into the conspiracy headed by actor John Wilkes Booth, a Southern zealot who had a fanatical hatred for the President. What started out as a kidnap plot to exchange Lincoln for captured Confederate soldiers became a scheme to debilitate the federal government by killing the President, Vice President Andrew Johnson and Secretary of State William Henry Seward. In regards to the overall documentary, the effort appears to be exhaustively researched and well presented. However I take issue with narrator Tom Hanks who states that this was the 'most resonant crime in the history of the nation'. Surely Hanks was alive when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated on the streets of Dallas, and in terms of 'resonance' for modern day viewers, I think Hanks' claim might have been made more for effect than for accuracy. By saying this I don't mean to imply that Lincoln's death was any less horrific or consequential, but in the 1860's it often took news of events a number of days or even weeks to travel across a smaller country than we have today. Additionally, it's made clear that Lincoln was hated by many, even some within his own party, whereas Kennedy enjoyed a popularity during his brief presidency that will probably never be rivaled again. So that's just a minor nit-pick I had with the picture. Though some other reviewers here expressed dissatisfaction with the principals who portrayed Lincoln (Billy Campbell) and Booth (Jesse Johnson), I don't think I ever gave it a second thought. This is a documentary one goes into to learn the facts behind an historical event, so I wasn't looking for or expecting an Oscar caliber performance. The principal players did a credible job backed up by supporting cast that handled their roles well. So overall, an excellent documentary that provides a springboard for those with more than a passing interest in the death of the sixteenth president. Behind the mere fact of Lincoln's assassination lies an entire saga relating to those responsible and the measures they took on the tragic night of April 14th, 1865.

The tragedy of President Abraham Lincoln's death is narrated in this film by Tom Hanks. I found Hanks to be an appropriate narrator, as he has a powerful voice and was confident in himself, making the movie easier to watch. However, I did not particularly like the actor for Booth. You could tell that he was acting, it wasn't a convincing performance. Regardless, the historical facts are all highly accurate, with little to no aspects of the film exaggerated. I would suggest this movie to anyone interested in learning more about the presidents death, as you are walked through the events, and can rely on the accuracy of the facts. Moreover, I was a fan of the fact that periodically throughout the movie, the number of days Lincoln had left to live were announced. A fact that I was unaware of prior to watching the film was that Lincoln had a dream a few days before his assassination, of his own death.

Well, I picked this up on blueray at a local story without knowing anything about it. Unfortunately, it is not what I expected. This is not a theatrical movie. IT's more like a documentary from the history channel or something. It was okay if you like watching TV but don't expect a movie. Historically it is very accurate but I did have some problems with this. For starters,, "from this point Lincoln has 12 days to live." Wow,, seriously? They kept counting this down. Very TV like. Secondly, why does everyone portray Lincoln as the slowest moving man in history? He wasn't that old. I'm pretty sure a guy his age could walk faster than a snail moving through molasses, but every actor seems to think Lincoln moved and walked like a 105 year old man! Finally,, and this is the one that really bugs me. Several times now, including in this movie,, actors doing narration refer to a horse mounted unit as THE CALVARY.. That is wrong. Calvary was the hill where Jesus was crucified. The word is CAVALRY - a horse mounted unit.. the V comes before the L. Does no one in Hollywood or the US. realize this? Why doesn't a script supervisor, set historian, or someone else say,, "Excuse me,, you're pronouncing that word wrong. It just cheapens the whole production.

Unike the highly acclaimed, and deservedly so, Spielberg film "Lincoln", this film goes behind the assassin John Wilkes Booth and his wish not only to kill the president, but also to overthrow the American government. The story behind the shot at Ford's Theater which killed Abraham Lincokn on April 14th 1865. The story is a docudrama, narrated by Tom Hanks, telling about the attempts to kill Lincoln from right months before, until they managed to do so. Interesting film, made for National a geographic Channel, especially for use to historically accuracy and for educational use, based on the best selling book with the same name by Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard. The film is made as accurate as possible, and that down to where people stood on photos, and it is made as a hybrid movie, which jumps out and in of the story, while also using time to dwell in photos and Tom Hanks as the story teller. Hanks is a descendant of Lincoln, hence Nancy Hanks actually was the name of Abraham Lincoln's mother. Not only Lincoln was killed on this night, but it was a conspiracy not unlike a coup d'Etat, when Booth run up on the stage seconds after the killing shouting "Sic semper tyrannis" from the stage afterwards. (So dies a tyrant.) After that starts the biggest man hunt in American history as well. Well worth a watch, and great stuff for usage for educational use, but also compelling watch off others who wants an accurate history telling.

Based on Bill O'Reilly's book of the same name, this is a documentary of Abraham Lincoln (Billy Campbell) and John Wilkes Booth (Jesse Johnson) as they head into the history books. Coming so close to Daniel Day-Lewis' amazing performance, Billy Campbell is unable to measure up. Booth is suppose to be a great actor. I wish they got somebody more well known than Jesse Johnson. He does a capable job but he needs a more powerful presence. The surprise comes from Tom Hanks' narration. When it first starts, I thought it was a grave mistake. After some time, his narration grows on me. And I really like the constant repetition of "Lincoln has ______ to live". It's a great way to build tension as the clock counts down. The production is good for a TV movie. I can't really vouch for its academic accuracy. I do wish for more on Booth. Lincoln's story could be trimmed but there is a good sequence of him visiting Richmond after its fall. It's a good watch.

The assassination of the 16th US President Abraham Lincoln might had been one of the most-documented moments in the history of the United States, but there are also conspiracies on what led to what would be remembered in history as the first successful assassination on an American president. It began with the person who had successfully did so in actor John Wilkes Booth along with his co-conspirators hatching the plan to not only assassinate Lincoln, but also key members of his administration in Vice-President Andrew Johnson and Secretary of State William Seward. Booth, who was already a prominent theatre actor in his day, had a genuine dislike for Lincoln. But assassinating the president who freed the slaves, something which Booth detested, was not originally in his plan. His original plan was to just kidnap Lincoln in order to demand release of captured Confederate soldiers. As for Lincoln, along with the story of Booth's, it concurrently charted the key moments leading up to the end of the American Civil War. It was 10 days before the day of the assassination happened, Lincoln had a dream of a body lying in a coffin in the middle of the White House and people were mourning the death of the person. When he asked who had died, he got the reply that it was the president. While that was the biggest indicator of what was to come at Ford's Theater, the docu-drama had also mentioned that there had been assassination plots on Lincoln throughout his presidency, but they were always being discovered. It was suggested that it came as a result of the level of dislike and hatred towards him, which was not seen on such a scale during the Civil War. Before the dream Lincoln had took place, the most prominent attempt came when Lincoln, all alone, was riding his horse to the War Department where his horse was being shot. History has always has a knack of pinpointing people into various labels, but despite Booth's hatred of Lincoln is well-documented; he was actually born in the state of Maryland which did not ceded from the Union. But it was also fascinating watching how those who witnessed the assassination had actually varying accounts from each other, such that there is no official account of what happened. Whatever one's views of the assassination is, the docu-drama is definitely worth your time.