A thrilling account Lincoln's presidency using personal letters and Lincoln family communications. I always love to hear the actual letters and diaries read to get a better understanding of people's feelings at the time. There was a tremendous amount of information not written in the history books. While complete press reports were conspicuously missing from the documentary, the extreme views of the time are brushed over. Getting to know the Lincolns and their family as well as the terrible times they lived through. The constant personal conflicts between Lincoln and his aids, cabinet secretaries, and military leaders were all relatively new to me. The death of their son Willie and the misery that loss caused for Mary Lincoln. It reaffirmed the inner strength and intellect I suspected of Abe Lincoln, and is missing from the leaders of today. The lack of action by the arrogant McClelland, just goes to show you that the elite have nothing on the common man. A true jewel for Lincoln fans and history buffs.
American Experience (TV Series)
Abraham and Mary Lincoln: A House Divided Part 1 - Ambition (2001)
User Reviews
Review this title8 Reviews
A Remarkable Film
tonius47 October 2006
This documentary is truly an informative and insightful narrative of how a nation and a leading family became in different ways divided over the burning issues resulting in a great civil war.
The opening of the film was very intriguing! We were looking at a window in a lighted room on a dark rainy night as Narrator David McCollough revealed to the viewers how a woman living upstairs was constantly taunted by passing neighborhood children as the "crazy lady." Actually, this was an ingenious lever to open with, drawing you into details on the personal and official lives of a historic American family--Abraham and Mary Lincoln.
This effective and unforgettable film presentation was a truly satisfying experience. I felt the voices selected for Abraham and Mary were supportive, but not particularly remarkable. It surprised me there existed so much historical detail on their personal lives. You almost felt like a fly on the wall. The historians, David Herbert Donald in particular, were especially engrossing.
Close to the film's end you are brought back to the same upstairs window in her Springfield, Illinois home as you listened to a very disturbing synopsis of Mary Lincoln's final days. Though the memories of her have been dwarfed by that of her legendary husband, this film succeeds in letting you not forget they existed together in shaping the landscape of American history.
The opening of the film was very intriguing! We were looking at a window in a lighted room on a dark rainy night as Narrator David McCollough revealed to the viewers how a woman living upstairs was constantly taunted by passing neighborhood children as the "crazy lady." Actually, this was an ingenious lever to open with, drawing you into details on the personal and official lives of a historic American family--Abraham and Mary Lincoln.
This effective and unforgettable film presentation was a truly satisfying experience. I felt the voices selected for Abraham and Mary were supportive, but not particularly remarkable. It surprised me there existed so much historical detail on their personal lives. You almost felt like a fly on the wall. The historians, David Herbert Donald in particular, were especially engrossing.
Close to the film's end you are brought back to the same upstairs window in her Springfield, Illinois home as you listened to a very disturbing synopsis of Mary Lincoln's final days. Though the memories of her have been dwarfed by that of her legendary husband, this film succeeds in letting you not forget they existed together in shaping the landscape of American history.
Familiar Abe, but Mary is a revelation
alanjj9 January 2004
I watched all 6 hours of this, and loved most every minute, but especially the portrayal of Mary Lincoln. It must have taken a lot of research to be able to compose such a complete portrait of this desperate, love-starved, and ultimately loony woman.
Holly Hunter's voice was very different from how I would have expected Mary to sound, but it did give her a sense of place (she was from Kentucky) and a much more girlish sound than usual. Watching Mary's rise to ecstasy and descent into self-pity is like being on a roller-coaster. And you feel sympathy for her, but want to slap her and say, "get it together, girl."
The documentarian's technique was thoroughly familiar--strictly the Ken Burns school, but that's not bad. The on-camera retellers were well-chosen--the best was David Herbert Donald, an excellent writer, and wizened old screen presence. He's the one who most gives the impression that he was there, and that he knew first-hand what was happening. Another particularly good story-teller was a woman identified as "Todd family friend." She had a real feeling for the story of the Todd family.
There was a lot of the same footage over and over--one that I kept noticing was a shot from "deep in the woods," used to dramatize slaves fleeing north, and soldiers going into difficult campaigns. Lots of shots of the mouths of cannons, as well. So what? I would have preferred some more maps of the area--show where Antietam is in relation to D.C. and Richmond, show where the wilderness is. But that's my preference. The show was mostly about Mary and Abe growing up, finding each other, their travails and their demise. It was a successful and engrossing presentation.
Holly Hunter's voice was very different from how I would have expected Mary to sound, but it did give her a sense of place (she was from Kentucky) and a much more girlish sound than usual. Watching Mary's rise to ecstasy and descent into self-pity is like being on a roller-coaster. And you feel sympathy for her, but want to slap her and say, "get it together, girl."
The documentarian's technique was thoroughly familiar--strictly the Ken Burns school, but that's not bad. The on-camera retellers were well-chosen--the best was David Herbert Donald, an excellent writer, and wizened old screen presence. He's the one who most gives the impression that he was there, and that he knew first-hand what was happening. Another particularly good story-teller was a woman identified as "Todd family friend." She had a real feeling for the story of the Todd family.
There was a lot of the same footage over and over--one that I kept noticing was a shot from "deep in the woods," used to dramatize slaves fleeing north, and soldiers going into difficult campaigns. Lots of shots of the mouths of cannons, as well. So what? I would have preferred some more maps of the area--show where Antietam is in relation to D.C. and Richmond, show where the wilderness is. But that's my preference. The show was mostly about Mary and Abe growing up, finding each other, their travails and their demise. It was a successful and engrossing presentation.
Marital Biography
DAHLRUSSELL12 August 2009
This excellent program is really two biographies in one. We get side by side biographies of both Lincoln and Mary. Both of these biographies are then put into context of their societies and the politics and ultimately the war that had an impact on everyone's life and broken families... Just when things seem to be settling down, there is a visit from Mary's confederate half sister.
The pace is methodical, which some might find slow, but it has a real payoff in the moments when we can really savor the richness of Lincoln's words and the choices he makes in the moment. Holly Hunter was a really poor choice for Mary's voice, her lateral lisp is too distracting for voice-over work, and her choice of breathy delivery was off putting. She's a fine actress, just a poor choice for voice-over work, and wrong for this role. A "name" is not always a good solution for a difficult voice casting choice. David McCullough's narration is seamless, as usual, Mr. Morse as the voice of Lincoln really fit perfectly - his voice seemed to be Lincoln and it was "unnoticable" and that is great vocal casting.
The variety of historians is the highlight here, they create a great window - from the Mary Lincoln historian who breathlessly relates Mary's side of things, to the writer who talks about Lincoln's choices as a writer, to the African American historians, one who thinks Lincoln didn't do enough, the other who appreciates that Lincoln evolved and had a good sense of how much and where he could push.
An excellent series, it would make an excellent gift for repeated viewings.
The pace is methodical, which some might find slow, but it has a real payoff in the moments when we can really savor the richness of Lincoln's words and the choices he makes in the moment. Holly Hunter was a really poor choice for Mary's voice, her lateral lisp is too distracting for voice-over work, and her choice of breathy delivery was off putting. She's a fine actress, just a poor choice for voice-over work, and wrong for this role. A "name" is not always a good solution for a difficult voice casting choice. David McCullough's narration is seamless, as usual, Mr. Morse as the voice of Lincoln really fit perfectly - his voice seemed to be Lincoln and it was "unnoticable" and that is great vocal casting.
The variety of historians is the highlight here, they create a great window - from the Mary Lincoln historian who breathlessly relates Mary's side of things, to the writer who talks about Lincoln's choices as a writer, to the African American historians, one who thinks Lincoln didn't do enough, the other who appreciates that Lincoln evolved and had a good sense of how much and where he could push.
An excellent series, it would make an excellent gift for repeated viewings.
Election to Antietam.
rmax30482310 August 2015
I hope this review applies to the title above. The version I watched on YouTube was about 1:20 long and showed two sections labeled "Shattered" and "Ambition." The 16th president, Abraham Lincoln was elected in 1860 and took office in 1861. The Union was falling apart over the issue of state sovereignty and particularly the issue of slavery. His election was the signal for seven states to leave the Union -- South Carolina first, then Alabama, Mississippi, Texas, Louisiana, Georgia and Florida, a region that now is called the Deep South. Several other states hung in the balance.
Lincoln's cojones were in a vice because he couldn't say anything provocative, his primary objective being to hold the Union together, bringing the recalcitrant South back into it, if possible. He's much criticized sometimes for not being blunt about whatever feeling he had towards the abolition of slavery but in fact that's all he had to do. A public pronouncement on the order of, "I oppose slavery", and, poof, a dozen more states join the Confederacy. His debates with Steven Douglas in Illinois had made clear his believe that slavery was an evil and that it would have to disappear sooner or later. "A house divided against itself cannot stand," etc. That's what had cause the original seven states to secede in the first place. He was in the position of a tight-rope walker, the Flying Wallenda of 1860.
The program focuses not on the Civil War but on the president and his wife, just as the title implies. Not that the violence of the war is skipped. It's just not described in detail, the way it was in Ken Burns' unimpeachable series from PBS, "The Civil War." The North lost the first set battle that was fought across the Potomac in Virginia -- Bull Run or First Mannassas -- in which more than 600 federal soldiers were killed and the US Army routed from the field, but the name of the battle isn't even mentioned.
As Lincoln agonized over the war, he spent less time with Mary. She'd been used to giving him advice, almost running his life, in Illinois but she didn't know Washington and Lincoln no longer had the leisure time required to listen to her or even to be with her. The White House was dirty and filled with rickety and broken furniture when they'd moved in and, at Lincoln's suggestion, she went on a shopping trip to New York and Boston to refurbish the place. Congress had voted her about twenty thousand dollars to do it.
But the press followed her around, recording every expensive purchase, and she came under criticism for being a spendthrift at a time when the nation was struggling to survive. The White House now had a wall-to-wall Belgian carpet of enormous expense while some soldiers didn't have blankets. The rebukes were not entirely unfounded. She'd overspent her budget by almost half, and there were more spending trips to come. Yet similar criticisms are raised against almost every president and his family by his political opponents. The current president is lambasted each time he plays a game of golf.
The death of their young son Willie sent her into a deep depression. She didn't attend the funeral and was bedridden for days at a time. It didn't help that most of her family was fighting for the Confederacy and some were being killed. Lincoln began to worry about her sanity. Her only relief from depression was shopping and she became to elegant dress and decor what Imelda Marcos was to shoes. Her only confidante was her black seamstress, Ms. Keckley.
The episode ends with the Emancipation Proclamation, which Lincoln had written much earlier but waited until the victory at Antietam (some "victory") to make public. It was an Executive Order that freed only the slaves in those states that were controlled by the Confederates. But as historian John Hope Franklin points out, everyone knew that it was the beginning of the end of slavery, not simply a partial movement that was an end in itself.
It may also have helped Lincoln win the war. The film doesn't say so but the Confederacy had been dreaming of having an end to the war brokered by a European power that would legitimize the South. Not anymore. The Civil War had been a political conflict to save or sever the Union. Now it had become a moral one to end slavery. No other nation would interfere with an effort to abolish slavery.
Lincoln's cojones were in a vice because he couldn't say anything provocative, his primary objective being to hold the Union together, bringing the recalcitrant South back into it, if possible. He's much criticized sometimes for not being blunt about whatever feeling he had towards the abolition of slavery but in fact that's all he had to do. A public pronouncement on the order of, "I oppose slavery", and, poof, a dozen more states join the Confederacy. His debates with Steven Douglas in Illinois had made clear his believe that slavery was an evil and that it would have to disappear sooner or later. "A house divided against itself cannot stand," etc. That's what had cause the original seven states to secede in the first place. He was in the position of a tight-rope walker, the Flying Wallenda of 1860.
The program focuses not on the Civil War but on the president and his wife, just as the title implies. Not that the violence of the war is skipped. It's just not described in detail, the way it was in Ken Burns' unimpeachable series from PBS, "The Civil War." The North lost the first set battle that was fought across the Potomac in Virginia -- Bull Run or First Mannassas -- in which more than 600 federal soldiers were killed and the US Army routed from the field, but the name of the battle isn't even mentioned.
As Lincoln agonized over the war, he spent less time with Mary. She'd been used to giving him advice, almost running his life, in Illinois but she didn't know Washington and Lincoln no longer had the leisure time required to listen to her or even to be with her. The White House was dirty and filled with rickety and broken furniture when they'd moved in and, at Lincoln's suggestion, she went on a shopping trip to New York and Boston to refurbish the place. Congress had voted her about twenty thousand dollars to do it.
But the press followed her around, recording every expensive purchase, and she came under criticism for being a spendthrift at a time when the nation was struggling to survive. The White House now had a wall-to-wall Belgian carpet of enormous expense while some soldiers didn't have blankets. The rebukes were not entirely unfounded. She'd overspent her budget by almost half, and there were more spending trips to come. Yet similar criticisms are raised against almost every president and his family by his political opponents. The current president is lambasted each time he plays a game of golf.
The death of their young son Willie sent her into a deep depression. She didn't attend the funeral and was bedridden for days at a time. It didn't help that most of her family was fighting for the Confederacy and some were being killed. Lincoln began to worry about her sanity. Her only relief from depression was shopping and she became to elegant dress and decor what Imelda Marcos was to shoes. Her only confidante was her black seamstress, Ms. Keckley.
The episode ends with the Emancipation Proclamation, which Lincoln had written much earlier but waited until the victory at Antietam (some "victory") to make public. It was an Executive Order that freed only the slaves in those states that were controlled by the Confederates. But as historian John Hope Franklin points out, everyone knew that it was the beginning of the end of slavery, not simply a partial movement that was an end in itself.
It may also have helped Lincoln win the war. The film doesn't say so but the Confederacy had been dreaming of having an end to the war brokered by a European power that would legitimize the South. Not anymore. The Civil War had been a political conflict to save or sever the Union. Now it had become a moral one to end slavery. No other nation would interfere with an effort to abolish slavery.
Not bad but it repeats a common myth or misconception.
planktonrules4 May 2012
This is the first part of a six-part series on the marriage of Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd. Two parts are shown on each DVD in the collection.
Most today don't realize that the Lincoln marriage was very, very troubled. Part of it was due to the depression that both Abe and Mary experienced and part of it was due to increasingly irrational behaviors of Mary--which only got worse after her husband's assassination. However, this being the first episode, it focuses much less on their problems and much more on the early life of Abe--from his birth until he is, rather miraculously, elected president. Considering Lincoln's rather mediocre political career up until then, it's a wonder that he became president--having only served one term in Congress and a couple terms in the state legislature.
For the most part I really enjoyed the show--it was, as usual, very interesting--like you'd expect from an episode of "The American Experience". However, as a history teacher I took MAJOR exception with one portion about Abe's early life. The show repeated the often repeated story about Abe and his first love, Ann Rutledge. The problem is many historians today believe that this is either a complete fabrication or it was grossly exaggerated in order to make Lincoln's life more interesting. The most difficult problem about this story is that it didn't even come out until AFTER Lincon's death and his family denied there was any truth to it. I don't mind them mentioning the story (after all, there is SOME evidence to support it) but to simply repeat it as an established fact is irresponsible. They should have at least mentioned the controversy. A strange breech of consistency in the show, that's for sure. Hopefully it will get better in the next portions of the show.
By the way, although it might seem petty, I was also a tad annoyed that the exact same violin piece was played again and again and again throughout the show. It really got on my nerves after a while.
Most today don't realize that the Lincoln marriage was very, very troubled. Part of it was due to the depression that both Abe and Mary experienced and part of it was due to increasingly irrational behaviors of Mary--which only got worse after her husband's assassination. However, this being the first episode, it focuses much less on their problems and much more on the early life of Abe--from his birth until he is, rather miraculously, elected president. Considering Lincoln's rather mediocre political career up until then, it's a wonder that he became president--having only served one term in Congress and a couple terms in the state legislature.
For the most part I really enjoyed the show--it was, as usual, very interesting--like you'd expect from an episode of "The American Experience". However, as a history teacher I took MAJOR exception with one portion about Abe's early life. The show repeated the often repeated story about Abe and his first love, Ann Rutledge. The problem is many historians today believe that this is either a complete fabrication or it was grossly exaggerated in order to make Lincoln's life more interesting. The most difficult problem about this story is that it didn't even come out until AFTER Lincon's death and his family denied there was any truth to it. I don't mind them mentioning the story (after all, there is SOME evidence to support it) but to simply repeat it as an established fact is irresponsible. They should have at least mentioned the controversy. A strange breech of consistency in the show, that's for sure. Hopefully it will get better in the next portions of the show.
By the way, although it might seem petty, I was also a tad annoyed that the exact same violin piece was played again and again and again throughout the show. It really got on my nerves after a while.
It is Mr. Grubin's worst film so far.
bigpolishguy25 April 2001
Once again we have to deal with Mr. Grubin's use of mundane metaphors. How many times do we need to see the sun, moon, or a galloping horse? Show some faces for cryin' out loud. Obviously Mr Grubin had to fill up his 6 hour doc with idle images because he couldn't use stock film footage they way used on his other docs. Too bad. The documentary could have been a good one. It is Mr. Grubin's worst film so far. One note of interest, Tom Haneke's editing for the first couple of hours was superb!
Part 4: Terrific ****
edwagreen23 July 2011
Warning: Spoilers
Pictures of Mary Todd Lincoln confirm why Ruth Gordon got to play her in the 1940 classic: "Abe Lincoln in Illinois," with Raymond Massey in the lead. Besides giving an outstanding performance, Gordon looked like the off-the-wall first lady.
Gen. McLellan had to go for his indecisiveness. The episode depicts Mary as brooding and in a deep depression following the 1862 death of her son Willie. She threw herself into shopping sprees and with her confidant, a former slave to Jefferson Davis, she tried to attain some salvation. Along with her husband, they visited hospitals and were able to overcome the horrible sights that they observed.
Lincoln really refused at first to deal with the slave issue. Even with the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, only those slaves living in states in rebellion against the U.S. would be freed. The border states would have seceded Lincoln feared had their slaves been emancipated.
Gen. McLellan had to go for his indecisiveness. The episode depicts Mary as brooding and in a deep depression following the 1862 death of her son Willie. She threw herself into shopping sprees and with her confidant, a former slave to Jefferson Davis, she tried to attain some salvation. Along with her husband, they visited hospitals and were able to overcome the horrible sights that they observed.
Lincoln really refused at first to deal with the slave issue. Even with the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863, only those slaves living in states in rebellion against the U.S. would be freed. The border states would have seceded Lincoln feared had their slaves been emancipated.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
