Tennessee Johnson (1942)

I love this movie so much

People are voting emotionally.

Absolutely the worst movie.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The film is rich in history and certainly boasts outstanding performances by Van Heflin as the maligned president and Lionel Barrymore, in top form, as the crusty Sen. Thaddeus Stephens,a Radical Republican, intent upon punishing the south forever for its efforts in the Civil War.The major problem that I had with this very good film was that it should have been longer. The period of 1830 is quickly fast forwarded to 1860. The Civil War is dealt with quickly. The real story here is the Johnson impeachment proceedings.Barrymore reminded me somewhat of the crusty old character he would play once more, four years later in the memorable "It's A Wonderful Life." He was an expert in getting people to loathe him. Even being confined to a wheelchair did not impair his acting ability. In fact, it made it stronger.Heflin is terrific, especially in scenes where he defends himself against the charges brought up against him, as well at the end when he returns to the senate as a former president and now Senator-elect.The picture just proved the hate of some people by using excuses of going against The Office of Tenure Act to drive out a sitting president from office in order to fulfill their agenda of hate and vindictive behavior.

I've never been a fan of Van Heflin. But I must admit that he was excellent in this film portraying President Andrew Johnson. I believe this film to be underrated. Yes, it is a biopic, with all its inaccuracies, but unlike some biopics of the time, it is extremely well done.The opening of a shackled Johnson escapee from bondage as a tailor apprentice is dramatic, and gives Marjorie Main some good scenes. It goes on to show the prejudice of of how landowners attempted to control the American population. Then, suddenly, there's a big gap in the film of about 20 years.The depiction of the bitter tensions boiling over in the U.S. Senate as the Civil War approaches is dramatic, and the set itself is impressive.Lionel Barrymore plays his role -- of Thaddeus Stevens -- to the hilt...very much like his role in "It's A Wonderful Life". And the Barrymore part really comes to life as the film enters the phase of the story regarding Johnson's impeachment, which is handled quite well.This is an interesting biopic, well done, with a fine performance by Van Heflin.

When I showed this movie to a Civil War specialist, he said it was almost comedic because of the many historical errors. For example, Johnson actually stayed away from the Senate Trial. In the movie, however, he gave a wonderful speech in his own defense. Also, the Senate President Pro Tempore, next in line to be President, was Benjamin Wade. In the film, however, he was James Waters. In reality, Senator Edmond Ross, who was healthy, cast the acquitting vote. In the movie, however, a dying senator named Huyler did this."Tennessee Johnson" canonizes Andrew Johnson and demonizes Thaddeus Stevens. I prefer a more nuanced interpretation of history, for I find good and bad in both men. Ambiguity was not the order of the day (1943), however. Instead, the film reflects the dominant historical interpretation of the day--the Dunning Thesis.FYI, I hold a M.A. in American History.

That letter Lincoln was supposed to have sent Johnson has kind of puzzled me. After all, it is read out loud twice. It SOUNDS like Lincoln's prose style, but I'd never heard of any other reference to it. So I posted the question on a Civil War news groups. Here's one of the exchanges."Robert Maxwell" wrote> It's generally agreed that at the second inauguration, Andrew Johnson was skunk drunk when he took the oath and tried to make his speech. I just watched the movie, "Tennessee Johnson," and it appears that Johnson was ill during the inauguration and that Lincoln later sent him a letter saying something like, "If you took a drink more often, you would know better than to take brandy on an empty stomach because you are ill. I know you only were there because I asked you to be." Does anyone know if this letter ever existed? Reply. "Having worked for three years as an assistant editor with The Papers of Andrew Johnson and as a member of the Board of Directors of the Abraham Lincoln Association, which is engaged in supporting projects to edit the papers of the sixteenth president, I can safely say that no one I know has ever claimed such a letter to exist."Anyone interested in the impeachment of Johnson might watch the first 20 minutes of Blight's lecture on the subject, on open courses from Yale. Don't be intimidated by "college" or "Yale". (I went there and it's not that demanding.) Blight gives an informative, objective, and lively presentation of the material -- interrupted briefly by somebody yelling "Let my people go," to which Blight replies, "You're free to leave...I hope that guy doesn't have a gun." http://academic earth.org/lectures/black-reconstruction-economics-of-land-and-laborPlease eliminate the space between "academic" and "earth". It's only there because IMDb.com doesn't allow words that are too long, like floccinaucinihilipilification.