The story of Abraham Lincoln's assassination has been told time and time again. Through new film The Conspirator, however, acclaimed actor/director Robert Redford (The Horse Whisperer, Lions for Lambs) provides a fresh twist on the age-old story from history textbooks. The Conspirator tells the story of the trial of Mary Surratt (Robin Wright), the woman accused of conspiring with John Wilkes Booth in the murder of President Lincoln. Even as the film remains true to history, Redford skillfully weaves emotion into the story and delivers a powerful drama to the big screen.
The Conspirator's strongest element is Redford's ability to bring audiences into a tumultuous time in history. Told from the point of view of Surratt's lawyer, Frederick Aiken (James McAvoy), the movie largely focuses on the complex relationship between Surratt and Aiken. Redford makes audiences feel the pain and hardship which Aiken and the Surratt family must endeavor. In addition, the numerous themes swirling around allow audiences of all backgrounds to connect to the film on a personal level. These powerful themes include mother-son relationships, conflicts of allegiance and a never-ending undercurrent of doubt. With obvious attention to detail, Redford finds a fine balance for his adaptation.
The acting in The Conspirator is nearly as powerful as its directing. McAvoy (Atonement, The Last King of Scotland) turns in another exceptional performance. Audiences are placed into a savage war going on in Aiken's mind; when Aiken struggled, I struggled as well. Wright (New York, I Love You) as Surratt is equally compelling. She constantly keeps audiences on their toes with her impassioned outbursts and dexterity in dealing with doubt. Unfortunately, a pair of subpar acting performances hampered the film, Justin Long(Accepted, Live Free or Die Hard), who is usually tremendously fun to watch, was a dud as Aiken's best bud, Nick. His horrendous mustache had a greater impact than his character. Alexis Bledel (Post Grad, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants), for her part, simply was annoying as Aiken's girlfriend Sarah. Other than these two, the cast was filled out excellently by the likes of Tom Wilkinson, Evan Rachel Wood and Kevin Kline. The beauty of this film lies within Surratt's trial and Aiken's development as a character. Aiken's romantic side was the only major flaw throughout the film. The few sentimental scenes interspersed throughout the central plotline seemed forced at times and, for the most part, out of place. It was unclear whether this was the result of a lack of chemistry between McAvoy and Bledel, an inconsistent script or poor directing. All I know is that it was uncomfortable watching those scenes, and in the end they served no apparent purpose.
Despite the few glitches, this film was high-quality entertainment. If you get enticed easily by exciting historical fiction, The Conspirator is the movie for you. Otherwise, it shouldn't be topping your "must-see" list.
Read More
The best albums of 2014
By Noah Zeidman | December 4, 2014Across genres, it has been a pretty great year in music.
Top 10 movies of 2014
December 4, 2014This has been an excellent year for film, offering everything from gripping blockbusters to innovative personal films.
Iggy Azalea is “Reclassified”
December 4, 2014It has become common practice among music artists to repackage their albums in an effort to simultaneously boost single sales and dish out new content by slightly renaming the album or slapping “Deluxe” onto the title.
