Politics was a dirty business even in the 19th century, and even when changing history for the better, as the best moments of Lincoln wittily and elegantly prove. Steven Spielberg‘s behemoth of a new film, which premiered in unfinished form at the New York film festival Monday night, has a title that suggests a sweeping portrait of the great 16th American president. But the film is largely too content depicting Abraham Lincoln as an all-knowing icon, and even with Daniel Day-Lewis‘s beautifully measured (and surprisingly soft-spoken) performance, Lincoln often recedes to the background of the very uneven movie that bears his name.

The screenplay from Pulitzer prize-winner Tony Kushner focuses on just the last four months of Lincoln’s life, as he works in Washington to end the civil war raging just south of him, but not before passing an amendment to officially outlaw slavery. The backroom deals and legal hurdles to make that happen are immensely complicated, but after some bulky exposition this wheeling and dealing among lawmakers makes for the film’s strongest scenes. Secretary of State William Seward (David Strathairn) hires a trio of hooligans (John Hawkes, Tim Blake Nelson and James Spader) to rustle up votes for the amendment through whatever means necessary, while on the floor of the House of Representatives, anti-slavery lawmaker Thaddeus Stevens (a gloriously scene-stealing Tommy Lee Jones) bellows at pro-slavery Fernando Wood (Lee Pace), with the roomful of men around them banging on their desks and shouting over each other. If only modern American politics were remotely as entertaining.

We visit the battlefield a few times, with General Ulysses S Grant (Jared Harris) preparing to negotiate peace with the Confederacy, but Lincoln is largely set in the cramped chambers of the White House and Congress; between that and the many speeches about constitutional law, it can start to feel a little airless. Glimpses into Lincoln’s personal life, including strained relationships with both his wife (Sally Field) and eldest son (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), are intended to add a human dimension to the president, but they’re never as effective as simply seeing the man at work; Gordon-Levitt has had a fantastic year in other films, but his character here is entirely superfluous, and Field brings tremendous overacting to a cast that’s otherwise quite restrained.

Lincoln isn’t as sentimental as you might expect from Spielberg, and though it never digs deep enough into Lincoln as a man, it’s unafraid to show him as a canny politician willing to bend the law and make enormous compromises to accomplish a greater goal. With John Williams’s gentle score, posh cinematography from Janusz Kaminski and a whole load of big costumes and facial hair for the cast, Lincoln veers too often toward becoming a somnolent period piece, but the strong cast and political texture always manage to perk things back up. Though it might have worked better as a tighter, purely political thriller with even less focus on the title character, Lincoln’s smarty-pants pleasures manage to outweigh its stuffy drawbacks.

LINCOLN is in theaters November 9th, 2012 (Limited) and Nationwide November 16th, 2012.

Steven Spielberg directs two-time Academy Award® winner Daniel Day-Lewis in “Lincoln,” a revealing drama that focuses on the 16th President’s tumultuous final months in office. In a nation divided by war and the strong winds of change, Lincoln pursues a course of action designed to end the war, unite the country and abolish slavery. With the moral courage and fierce determination to succeed, his choices during this critical moment will change the fate of generations to come.

“Like” LINCOLN on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LincolnMovie
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/lincolnmovie
Official site: http://www.thelincolnmovie.com

Television interview of witness who saw Lincoln shot

LINCOLN is in theaters November 9th, 2012 (Limited) and Nationwide November 16th, 2012.

Steven Spielberg directs two-time Academy Award® winner Daniel Day-Lewis in “Lincoln,” a revealing drama that focuses on the 16th President’s tumultuous final months in office. In a nation divided by war and the strong winds of change, Lincoln pursues a course of action designed to end the war, unite the country and abolish slavery. With the moral courage and fierce determination to succeed, his choices during this critical moment will change the fate of generations to come.

“Like” LINCOLN on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/LincolnMovie
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/lincolnmovie
Official site: http://www.thelincolnmovie.com

Television interview of witness who saw Lincoln shot

Several emails from Tennessee fans reached the same conclusion the last two weeks.

“It’s a tough time to be a Vol fan,” they read.

And it’s about to get tougher.

I’m not referring to a schedule that has lightened considerably after a gruesome October. Inner conflict is the issue now. Fans will have to wrangle with the prospect of pulling for or against their favorite team.

Sounds almost blasphemous, doesn’t it? But that’s the reality of a 4-5 season preceded by back-to-back losing seasons for a fan base that for so many years experienced so much better.

In 2001, when Tennessee played at Notre Dame, my wife couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She said she was surrounded by Notre Dame fans who were pulling for their team to lose in hopes that then-coach Bob Davie would be fired.

The fans got what they wanted. Notre Dame lost to the Vols, fired Davie and replaced him with Ty Willingham. Eleven years and two more coaches later, the Irish are in the running for a national championship. So it all worked out, huh?

It’s too soon to tell how things will work out for the Vols, although their recent track record is hardly encouraging.

UT defeated Troy 55-48 Saturday afternoon as the two offenses combined for more than 100 points and more than 1,400 yards. That’s fine

for the Big 12 or the Pac-10. But even in a wildly offensive era, the numbers had to be grating for longtime UT fans sitting in a stadium named after a coach whose 1937 defense held 10 opponents to 47 points.

Tennessee won the game. It’s still in the running for a bowl game and a winning season. And if it wins out — bowl game included — it would have as many as eight victories for the first time in five years. That would signify progress for third-year coach Derek Dooley, who assumed leadership of the program in the worst of times.

But that’s hardly enough for many fans, who no longer can envision better seasons to come. In fact, the defense has become such an eyesore, fans struggle to celebrate the historic passing numbers put up by UT quarterback Tyler Bray or the exploits of wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson, who has become one of the most entertaining players ever to juke a defender on Tennessee’s behalf.

If UT loses another game, athletic director Dave Hart would have no choice but to make a coaching change. But at 7-5, there’s doubt.

And that’s why some UT fans will be inwardly pulling for Missouri on Saturday afternoon at Neyland Stadium.

John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knoxnews.com. Follow him at http://twitter.com/johnadamskns.