How accurate is Steven Spielberg's Lincoln? And what did the movie get wrong?
Listener Elijah wants to know how closely the 2012 film starring Daniel Day-Lewis matches the real history of Abraham Lincoln—and there may be no better person to answer than Harold Holzer, one of America's leading Lincoln historians and the film's principal historical advisor.
Harold takes Bob Crawford behind the scenes of Lincoln, explaining what the movie gets remarkably right—and where Hollywood took some liberties. He reveals how the filmmakers approached Lincoln's voice, personality, storytelling, political maneuvering, and relationship with the people around him.
The conversation goes deep into the dramatic struggle to pass the 13th Amendment, including Lincoln's efforts to win Democratic votes, his secret meeting with Confederate peace commissioners, and the complicated politics surrounding emancipation. Harold also weighs in on the movie's portrayals of Thaddeus Stevens, Mary Todd Lincoln, Edwin Stanton, and Lincoln himself.
And then there's the historical detail Harold warned screenwriter Tony Kushner about—one that Spielberg decided was simply too dramatically effective to change.
If you love Lincoln, Abraham Lincoln, the Civil War, historical movies, or the question of where Hollywood ends and history begins, this episode is for you.
Featuring Harold Holzer, Lincoln historian, author, and historical advisor to Steven Spielberg's Lincoln.