Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

John Ford

Writer:

Lamar Trotti (screenplay)

Release Date:

9 June 1939 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

The story of Abraham Lincoln that has NEVER been told!

Plot:

A fictionalized account of the early life of the American president as a young lawyer facing his greatest court case.

Plot Keywords:

Springfield Illinois | Murder | Illinois | Abraham Lincoln | Lawyer

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win

Cast

Henry Fonda	...	Abraham Lincoln
Alice Brady	...	Abigail Clay
Marjorie Weaver	...	Mary Todd
Arleen Whelan	...	Sarah Clay
Eddie Collins	...	Efe Turner
Pauline Moore	...	Ann Rutledge
Richard Cromwell	...	Matt Clay
Donald Meek	...	Prosecutor John Felder
Judith Dickens	...	Carrie Sue
Eddie Quillan	...	Adam Clay
Spencer Charters	...	Judge Herbert A. Bell
Ward Bond	...	John Palmer Cass
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Tiny Jones	...	(scenes deleted) (as Elizabeth Jones)
Eddy Waller	...	Father (scenes deleted)
Clarence Wilson	...	Dr. Mason (scenes deleted)

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Mirrophonic Recording)

Certification:

Finland:S | USA:Approved (PCA #5216)

Filming Locations:

Sacramento, California, USA

Company:

Cosmopolitan Productions

Trivia:

John Ford and producer Darryl F. Zanuck fought an extended battle over control of the film. Ford even had unused takes of the film destroyed so the studio could not insert them into the movie. One scene that Ford insisted on cutting was a scene where Lincoln met his future assassin, a very young John Wilkes Booth.

Quotes:

[Lincoln and Felder are picking jurors for the trial of Matt and Adam Clay]
Prosecutor John Felder: Mr. Lincoln should know that the mere fact that a prospective juror knows counsel for the state does not disqualify him.
Abe Lincoln: I know that, John. What I'm afraid of is that some of the jurors might NOT know you... and that'd put me at a great disadvantage.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Omnibus: John Ford: Part One" (1992)

Soundtrack:

Yankee Doodle

Henry Fonda is Terrific

Young Mr. Lincoln(1939) was released in the same year as another classic by John Ford called Stagecoach(1939). Its amazing that two great films like these were overlooked for the Best Picture award of 1939. Tells the fictitious but compelling story of the early days of Abraham Lincolm when he was a young struggling lawyer. He shows traits that made him famous during his role as the President of the United States. He does have a touch of the Sherlock Holmes method of solving crimes for he uses it to have defend a man falsely accused of murder.

Patriototic motion picture that is one of my favorite films from John Ford. Henry Fonda is perfect in the role of the young Abraham Lincoln. In fact, he bears a little resemblence to the late admired and revered, Abraham Lincoln. Fonda gives a performance of admiring humaine tenderness. Many of the scenes in Young Mr Lincoln(1939) are done with beauty and finesse.