Synopsis
Mary Surratt is the lone female charged as a co-conspirator in the assassination trial of Abraham Lincoln. As the whole nation turns against her, she is forced to rely on her reluctant lawyer to uncover the truth and save her life.
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Cast
- James McAvoyFrederick Aiken
- Robin WrightMary Surratt
- Evan Rachel WoodAnna Surratt
- Kevin KlineEdwin Stanton
- Alexis BledelSarah Weston
- Danny HustonJoseph Holt
- Justin LongNicholas Baker
- Colm MeaneyDavid Hunter
- Tom WilkinsonReverdy Johnson
- Norman ReedusLewis Payne
Recommendations
- 100
Observer
No matter where your political leanings lie, the great thing about The Conspirator is that Mr. Redford is wise enough to let the audience decide what the parallels are. See it, enjoy a ripping good yarn and learn something. - 91
Tampa Bay Times
Redford proves that at 75 he can still choose meaningful projects and deliver them with intelligence. - 75
Orlando Sentinel
May not be as emotionally compelling as John Ford's work ("The Prisoner of Shark Island"), but it's every bit as meticulously crafted. - 70
Time
Wright's performance is the key to a movie that pulses with the sick thrill of historical discovery. The Conspirator reminds us that. when we surrendered so many of our Constitutional rights and judgments after 9/11, it wasn't the first time. - 70
Chicago Reader
The real standout is Kevin Kline as secretary of war Edwin Stanton. - 60
New York Magazine (Vulture)
The screenwriter, James Solomon, does the poor job only a liberal could at making the case for a Cheneyesque "dark side," and he isn't helped by Kline's wooden acting. Too bad. The Conspirator is eloquent enough to let the other side have its say. - 60
Time Out
There's no Deep Throat this time, but Tom Wilkinson does his best Ben Bradlee as a hawkish legal mentor, while Kevin Kline coos menacingly as Lincoln's Nixonian war secretary, Edwin Stanton, a man seeking to hang prisoners out of political expediency. It all seems a little forced. - 58
IndieWire
While Redford frames the drama with a tense atmosphere, it doesn't shake the sense that we're watching a tame made-for-TV affair.
