Lincoln & SkyFall

These reviews are a bit on the late side, but as two of them are still in theaters, you may still have an interest. (Don't worry, book reviews will be coming down the pipeline soon.)

Lincoln

This is Oscar winning stuff. One for the film, one for Daniel Day Lewis, one for Sally Field, one for the director, one for the screenwriter and possibly one for Tommy Lee Jones. BTW there are several faces you will recognize from other films that I can't possibly mention here, but every time one of them popped up on screen I thought, 'He's in this too?' (It is a rather male dominated film, sorry ladies.) All through the film I prayed that what I was seeing/learning was accurate, because I am not a history girl. Oh, I didn't worry about the battle dates being correct, my hopes were pinned on the characters/personalities portrayed. For ex. I really hope Lincoln was a story teller, because I really loved that about him in the film. I had no idea Mary Todd had mental issues (not that she didn't have just causes, being married to the President during the Civil War would've driven most women over the edge I imagine.) I researched that one after the film and she did indeed have some mental breakdowns. I also researched her children and only the oldest made it to live a full adult life and a very successful one at that. Why don't we learn about that in school? There were also all the underlying politics I had no idea were going on at the time to get the 13th amendment passed or refused. When teaching kids about the civil war, show them this one. It'll be more productive then making them memorize the dates of all the battles.

Warnings: I did close my eyes a few times. War isn't really my thing and watching someone get blasted by a cannon, etc. isn't an image I need burned into my brain. I esp. shut my eyes for the amputee veterans hospital. I could see that one coming and knew where that was headed and I just didn't need to see it to make it real.

This I would put on your must see once list. It doesn't necessarily go on my have to own on BluRay list. It's not one I would watch over and over. Though I may still rent it when it hits Redbox.

SkyFall

Well, it's James Bond. That pretty much sums it up. We've got Bond, the villain, some chase scenes, standoffs and a couple of girls for romantic interest. But there are holes all over the plot so don't look too closely. Watch for entertainment sake only.

The one thing I really liked about it was the opening scene which is a motorcycle chase across rooftops because I thought it was very original. Unfortunately, this has already been done in a past Bond film as a Bond aficionado informed me. Drat!

This isn't one I need to watch again.

What did you think of these? Are there ones you've seen recently in the theater that need to go on my 'see this' list?