Seattle's AMC Pacific Place 11 is one of the first venues in the country to show "Lincoln" before the film's wide release on Nov. 16.

Over the weekend, my friend and I attended a matinee screening. We managed to nab two of the last open seats in the theater.

In one of the opening scenes, soldiers greet President Abraham Lincoln and recite his brief but memorable Gettysburg Address. I cannot believe the enduring power of those words, which are featured in the trailer below.

Watch:

Thank goodness director Steven Spielberg chose to release this two-and-a-half hour film after the election. The four months depicted in "Lincoln" prove that reconciliation is needed and possible to achieve in America. Not only did our 16th president find a way to bring a bloody civil war to an end within that period, he simultaneously engineered the effort to abolish slavery. Lincoln's leadership has stood the test of time; he took risks that resulted in a stronger union.

The stoic, bearded "Honest Abe" I remember from the history books of my childhood is brought to life by Daniel Day-Lewis. The Academy Award-winning actor told CBS News' "60 Minutes" that he's "never, ever felt that depth of love for another human being that I never met."

Democracy is a beautiful thing to watch in film, especially when the protagonist is someone who really lived and inscribed the words that still inspire us 147 years after his death: "(G)overnment of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."