| | | The Criterion Collection
Features: DVD
Few historical figures are as revered as Abraham Lincoln, and few director-star pairings embody classic American cinema as perfectly as do John Ford and Henry Fonda. In Young Mr. Lincoln, their first collaboration, Fonda gives one of the finest performances of his career as the young president-to-be struggling with an incendiary murder case as a novice lawyer. Compassionate and assured, this indelible piece of Americana marks the beginning of Ford and Fonda's ascent to legendary status.
"Astounding!" ABC-7 Chicago
"Four Stars!" Film Threat
"An inspiring story of uncommon valor!" Philadelphia Enquirer
Editor's Note
John Ford's film on the early career of Abraham Lincoln, which centers on an apocryphal murder trial, impressed even the great Sergei Eisenstein. It stars Henry Fonda as the title character, who opts for the law after receiving encouragement from his early, ill-fated love, Anne Rutledge (Pauline Moore). Too poor to own even a horse, he arrives in Springfield on a mule and soon establishes a law practice with friend John Stuart (Edwin Maxwell). At a July 4th celebration, a man is murdered in a brawl, and the accused are Matt and Adam Clay (Richard Cromwell and Eddie Quillan), two brothers of a family that Lincoln knows. After saving the two men from a lynch mob, Lincoln becomes their defending attorney, a difficult task since each man claims guilt to spare the other. Admiring his courage, Mary Todd (Marjorie Weaver) invites him to her sister's soiree and expresses an intense interest in his future. More pressing is his meeting with Abigail Clay (Alice Brady), who understandably refuses to tell Lincoln which of her sons is the killer. Although entirely fictional, Ford's fable conveys the essence of the great man's character: honesty, humor, wisdom, and a shrewdness that knew how to take a back road to reach the high road. A triumph of acting, writing, and direction, YOUNG MR. LINCOLN features one of Fonda's greatest screen performances.
Plot Summary
This biography provides a glimpse into the fascinating life Abraham Lincoln led before he became a politician, focusing especially on Lincoln's prowess in his first career as a lawyer as he defends two brothers accused of murder in what becomes a very incendiary trial.
| Features | 2-DVD Set | | A New Essay By Film Critic Geoffrey O'Brien | | Academy Award Theater Radio Dramatization Of Young Mr. Lincoln, Downloadable As An MP3 File | | Archival Audio Interviews With Director John Ford And Star Henry Fonda | | Audio: English Dolby Digital Mono | | Interactive Menus | | Photo Gallery | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Image |
| Release Date: 2/14/2006 |
| Original Release Date: 1940 | | Catalog ID: 1617 DDVD | | UPC: 00715515016728 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English | | Available Subtitles: English | | Video: B&W |
Aspect Ratio | | Standard 1.33:1 [4:3] |
| Cast & Crew
| Awards |
Oscar (1940) | | | Lamar Trotti, Nominee, Best Writing, Original Story |
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| | Professional Reviews | Uncut
"[T]he small-town whimsy here is undercut with real darkness..." 03/01/2005 p.140Sight and Sound
"The tone shifts smoothly from folksy humour to suspense, reaching an epic note in the iconic final shot..." 04/01/2005 p.86 Entertainment Weekly
"Henry Fonda manages plainspoken eloquence in this visually simple, morally complex movie, a too rarely emulated model for political filmmaking." -- Grade: A 02/17/2006 p.61 Premiere
"[A] cornerstone of the director's loving but critical perspective on American myth and history." 03/01/2006 p.112 New York Times
"Ford's dual vision of Lincoln leads him to one of the most extraordinary closing acts in American film..." 02/14/2006 p.E3 |
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