By chance, I saw Lincoln this afternoon. Since it was directed by Mr Spielberg and especially because it was written by Mr Kushner, I had not intended to go. But B invited me and, well...there I was. My back was up from the opening scene.
I will only note this for now. While the White characters had a huge range, revealing all manner of human desires, failings, accomplishments, etc. the Black characters were uniformly saintly, one dimensional holy cards in the Kushnerian Passion Play. Despite the film's focus on the messy business of politics among the Whites, the Negroes were without ambiguity or flaw, either bravely seeking justice or nobly enduring hardship, all pious cartoons.
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A further thought. It is the default attitude of the right-thinking that Blacks are owed something. In fact, they are owed pretty well anything they want. Just ask MLK. This moral stature is not based on any proven accomplishments of theirs but simply on the fact of others not treating them well. It is the great example of the Liberal worship of the victim. Simply by dint of being a victim --or better, of being granted the role of victim-- moral superiority is achieved. Actual behavior has nothing to do with it.
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