It had it's moments but the movie just failed to capture what should have been an emotional powerhouse. I didnt feel any emotion at all during this film besides the humerous fact that there were some terrible mis-casts for this film. Justin Long (a terrible cast who plays his part poorly), Alexis Bledel (who is as interesting as watching walls), and Evan Rachel Wood (a serious over-acting actress that sucks hard through out). James McAvoy however plays his part perfectly but he alone cant make up for the trash around him.

Also lets face it, The film was boring. It was insanely predictable that the woman was gonna be a sacrificial lamb from the begining, It spoiled the journey of getting to that point. I generally like films like this (which is why I rented it) but this is one film that I would suggest avoiding. I did not like it at all.… Expand

Good film - slow burner but I thought that the pacing was spot on for what is an historical period drama. I never even knew about the intrigue behind Lincoln's assassination so this was a learning experience for me. Great to see Robin Wright Penn and Toby Kebbell in a film again - great, undervalued actors of the current film generation.
Highly recommended.

A lot of care went into to making this film. The setting, costuming, and actors all seem to be giving it their all, but the script could use a lot of work. Drama there is in abundance, but there could have been so much more. This is a rental at best, or just wait for it on tv.

An "I could not care less" storyline associated with Lincoln's assassination, turns out to be a powerful drama with some notable performances from Robin Wright and James McAvoy.

This is a quiet film. It doesn't scream. It doesn't base itself on hystrionics. Visually it's as subdued as the script. Redford actually suceeds in underscoring the injustice and the way in which our legal system treats those the constitution is supposed to protect. I don't think this will ever be regarded as a great film but I do think that in the future it will be regarded as one of those rare moments when one has an experience. There is no way anyone can watch what is revealed and not be surprised by the turn events and the injustice. MacAvoy gives one of the his best performances. Robin Wright is restrained. Kline also turns in a excellent turn. Wilkinson seems to be lost in the shuffle which is rare for him or perhaps it's just that he isn't given much to do. There are lot of thankless roles in this film but it doesn't seem that Redford was as interested in creating memorable characters as he was in creating a memorable case of injustice. The direction is on point. The script seems at times to understate the motivations and the situation. The critics murdered this film and I suspect the public stayed away because of that and because perhaps everyone still wishes to believe that Mary Surratt probably would have pulled the trigger herself if she'd been in Booth's Theater that night. A shame there isn't more to work with in creating this piece.… Expand

It tells the story Mary Surratt very well with dazzling imagery and great dialog. To bad that the story itself at times isn't all the interesting. The film is the best that it could possibly be.

Ken Macri

Robert Redfordâ

"The Conspirator" is based on a fantastic story story; however, sadly this fantastic story is warped by an insufficient script, a mostly lackluster cast, and spotty direction.

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Regardless of her status as a ruthless collaborator(or not) who consorted with the likes of the infamous John Wilkes Booth, boardinghouse owner Mary Surratt deserved a better fate than to be the mother of a son who could be so cowardly and unconscionable, so utterly without a chivalrous bone in his body. Somewhere in Canada, while Mary staged a hunger strike in the confinement of a windowless prison cell throughout the Lincoln Conspirators' seven-week trial, John Surratt let his mother take the rap, eluding capture by lodging with Catholic priests at an undisclosed church, far away from the military tribunal who would put her to death. The urgent message for his immediate return stateside that counselor Frederick Aiken passes along to a go-between bishop would elapse unheeded by the fugitive son, who'd eventually flee to Rome following Mary's execution for her alleged involvement in the conspiracy plot to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln. Two years after Mary Surratt's lifeless body dangled from the gallows, U.S. Marshals finally caught up with John Jr.in Egypt and dispatched him back to the District of Columbia. Since "The Conspirator" is based on Kate Clifford Larson book "The Assassin's Accomplice: Mary Surratt and the Plot to Kill Abraham Lincoln", whose retelling of the events following the 19th century political killing by the historian posits the Confederate sympathizer as being unequivocally guilty, Frederick's encounter with Mary's son is a relatively low-key affair, in which the counselor never attacks John physically, or even verbally, for not coming out of hiding to clear her mother's good name like a real man. To do so would be anathematic to Larson's thesis, because it would transform Mary Serratt into a martyr for the railroaded, and simultaneously, disrepute the filmmaker's claim that "The Conspirator" takes an objective view on the guilty verdict which made Serratt, a Civil War widow and mother of three, the first woman to receive the death penalty from the federal government. Despite such seemingly unprejudicial considerations on the filmmaker's part related to Mary's innocent or guilt, why then does the moviegoer anticipate fireworks, a vituperation by the counselor on his dead client's behalf against the familial prisoner? The answer to this question can be traced back to the filmmaker's prerogative to create his own moral universe, which in this case, becomes a unilateralist one, where a systemic calibration of sneaky didacticism which leans toward the Catholic woman's innocence is propounded subversively without Larson's cognizance. In hindsight, there appears to have been an extradiegetic dialectic before production started. The omnipresent rosary beads which Mary clutches tightly in her fingers until gravity jars it loose, is next seen to be in the counselor's hands, a memento for John to remember her mother by. Using disingenuous restraint, the son beats Frederick to the punch with a petition about his unworthiness of Mary Serratt's bestowal, therefore denying the catharsis that "The Conspirator" seems on the verge of furnishing. Frederick's seemingly passionless disposition towards Mary suggests that he has second thoughts about Mary's innocence. His attitude would mirror Larson's own experience, but it doesn't mirror what the filmmaker holds to be true. Through the failure to disclose the pertinent fact concerning Mary Serratt's ownership of slaves, the filmmaker goes rogue, despite his undeviating fidelity toward the court record, because keeping black men as chattel would underscore Mary's unabiding hatred for Lincoln that "The Conspirator" seems unwilling to admit. Vaguely referred to as "the cause", slavery's ties with institutionalized white privilege would pose a bad fit for the film's secret agenda of maintaining the feminist myth that Mary was a naif amidst all the deadly machinations hatched by her boarders, and the all-male military tribunal. Frederick, a former Union hero who fought for the limited enfranchisement of the "coloreds", should have interrupted Mary right then and there in the course of her fond remembrances about the Confederacy's fight for "the cause" with a sharp rebuttal. An honest film would have the two sides hashing out their ideological differences, but alas, "The Conspirator" is not that film. At some level, these natural born enemies must distrust each other, but the common ground that both Frederick and Mary arrive at is never truly earned, because the camaraderie among the strange bedfellows occurs without the benefit of incremental dramatization. This time around, the filmmaker can't be criticized for cinematic partisanship in this follow-up to the hysterically liberal "Lions for Lambs". Sure, "The Conspirator" is a political allegory against the danger of convicting terrorists with similar tribunals, but as it turns out, Obama is no different from Bush. The filmmaker realizes this irony.… Expand

I saw this film five days ago and I'm still haunted by the quiet power of this engaging film. Redford's careful and patient direction magically allows the film to take its time without ever feeling boring or stale. James McAvoy continues to grow into a passionate lead actor and Robin Wright should immediately jump to the top of a short list for a potential Best Supporting Actress nomination for this understated performance. However, the REAL star of this gorgeous looking film is Newton Thomas Sigel for his amazing cinematography which should garner him his first Oscar nomination for his work here.I don't know how he did it, but the muted colors, simulated natural lighting, and fluid camera movement gives the impeccably detailed sets, costumes, and make-up an uncanny look of historical realism that has lingered in my mind for days now. This is one that I look forward to seeing see a second time, and will be buying for my collection once it comes out on Blu-Rayâ… Expand

A real disappointment. Here is a classic story that had so many angles and interests yet Redford offered a narrow, uninspired legalistic thread. Could you have imagined how good this could have been with just more scenes of the plot and plotters, more Washington intrigue? So many avenues left unexplored. I was let down..

this movie was very well done, it was based on some true events. from the beginning of the movie with the assignation you are glued to the screen. its harder to write reviews on movies that are true stories but this one was good. with movies at the start of the movie you wonder "do i care" the back story of this really makes you care you care about the characters and thats what makes this movie so good.… Expand

This was one of the few movies I was looking forward to in 2011, and it delivered. Great story, great acting, and top notch directing make this one of the few 'good' movies of 2011. I highly recommend it!

Excellent movie! Redford does a good job of presenting the story in a way that captures your interest and uses the Civil War time frame to convey the clear message that when military tribunals are used to trample on basic constitutional rights everyone loses. Robin Wright and James McEvoy did an excellent job. I found the movie thoroughly engrossing and powerful.

One of the men who plotted to assassinate President Lincoln remained in hiding, while his mother was tried for the crime. An inexperienced attorney (what else?) was appointed to defend her. Despite overwhelmingly unfair circumstances, he (James McAvoy) staunchly fights for her innocence. While all the performances are strong and the period art direction/cinematography is gorgeous, director Robert Redford somehow slacked on the emotional impact. As a result, this is a beautifully wrought history lesson.… Expand