About one year ago, the famous actor Daniel Day-Lewis was named by director Steven Spielberg to star in the Spielberg's biographical film about Abraham Lincoln. Filming has been under way in Richmond, Virginia since March 2011, with release due in December 2012.
The image above is of Day-Lewis with his Lincoln appearance. I think it's an absolutely uncanny resemblance, even better than the resemblance that most re-enactors achieve. This photo was taken at a restaurant in Richmond while the actor was having lunch, and has since gone "viral" on the Internet.
Daniel Day-Lewis is a devotee' of the "method" style of acting, a process where the actor *becomes* the character he or she is portraying through extensive study of the character's writings, thoughts, mannerisms, etc. Supposedly Day-Lewis has been "in character" as Abraham Lincoln since filming began. Even off-camera, he still uses the same thin, high-pitched voice Lincoln was known for. Additionally, the script apparently doesn't list the actor's name; it lists him as Abraham Lincoln.
Day-Lewis is a two-time Oscar winner, as is the actress signed to portray Mary Todd Lincoln: Sally Field. Others in this star-studded cast include James Spader, Hal Holbrook, Tommy Lee Jones, David Strathairn, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.
Just looking at this photo makes me confident that Daniel Day-Lewis will be brilliant in this role, as he is in any role he plays. The other actors will be outstanding as well. Let's hope that Steven Spielberg directs to the best of his ability as in "Saving Private Ryan" and not as he did "AI: Artificial Intelligence" when he ruined Stanley Kubrick's vision of a dark world by turning into a "Disney" film. In fact, Disney's Touchstone Pictures is releasing this Lincoln film, which makes me worry that it won't be a serious, in-depth look at Abraham Lincoln's final months.
The film is, of course, based on Doris Kearns Goodwin's book "Team Of Rivals: The Political Genius Of Abraham Lincoln", the book which will not die. The book is well-written and is quite good, but in my personal opinion, it did not deserve the excessive publicity it has achieved.
All that aside, I am eagerly anticipating the release of this film, scheduled for December 2012. I will keep my readers posted on any breaking news.
