The Face of Lincoln
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | The Face of Lincoln |
| Country of production | United States |
| original language | English |
| Publishing year | 1955 |
| length | 22 minutes |
| Rod | |
| Director | Edward Freed |
| production | Wilbur T. Blume |
| camera | Richard Harber |
| cut | Richard Harber |
The Face of Lincoln is an American short film by Edward Freed from 1955 in which the sculptor Robert Merrell Gage models the facial features of the former US President Abraham Lincoln and tells his life story.
action
Gage, professor of fine arts and head of sculpture at the University of Southern California , first explains Abraham Lincoln's face from the perspective of a sculptor. The face is demanding to model because the two halves of the face are clearly different. Gage eventually begins sculpting Lincoln's bust from a block of clay. He reports on stations in Lincoln's life, his political rise, his work as a lawyer and his wives. Finally the portrait of young Lincoln is finished.
In the course of the narrative Gages Lincoln's life progresses and the changes to his appearance also become evident, for example Lincoln initially had a beard. The Civil War was also deeply engraved on Lincoln's face. The initially simple wrinkles, including those on the forehead, become ever deeper wrinkles that run through the whole face. Finally, Lincoln's hair goes back, he parted differently and his beard thins. This image, continuously reproduced with sound, is the final one that shows him at the time he was murdered. Gage concludes with the hope that Lincoln's spirit and beliefs may live on.
production
The Face of Lincoln was realized by the Department of Cinema at the University of Southern California. Merrell Gage (1892–1981) was considered a Lincoln expert. He created two Lincoln monuments: a statue of Lincoln seated in front of the Kansas State Capitol in Topeka and a bust of Lincoln that was erected in Los Angeles and resembles the one modeled in the film. The film received a copyright entry on December 1, 1955.
Awards
The Face of Lincoln won an Oscar in 1956 for Best Short Film (Two-Reel). The film was also nominated for an Oscar in the Best Documentary Short Film category.
See also
Web links
- The Face of Lincoln in the Internet Movie Database (English)