Lincoln

Director Steven Spielberg takes on Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln. The film laser-focuses on the months after his reelection that Lincoln spent fighting for ratification of the 13th Amendment. The story is significant, humorous and extremely enlightening, reminding us that political drama can be thrilling if it's centered on a great cause. It's a shame, then, that some of the side stories (Sally Field as the troubled Mary Todd Lincoln and Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the combat-hungry Robert Lincoln) feel like footnotes. 149 minutes PG-13.