The Conspirator

Plot

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.

Release Year: 2010

Rating: 7.0/10 (10,379 voted)

Critic's Score: 55/100

Director:
Robert Redford

Stars: Robin Wright, James McAvoy, Tom Wilkinson

Storyline
In the wake of Abraham Lincoln's assassination, seven men and one woman are arrested and charged with conspiring to kill the President, the Vice-President, and the Secretary of State. The lone woman charged, Mary Surratt, 42, owns a boarding house where John Wilkes Booth and others met and planned the simultaneous attacks. Against the ominous back-drop of post-Civil War Washington, newly-minted lawyer, Frederick Aiken, a 28-year-old Union war-hero, reluctantly agrees to defend Surratt before a military tribunal. As the trial unfolds, Aiken realizes his client may be innocent and that she is being used as bait and hostage in order to capture the only conspirator to have escaped a massive manhunt, her own son.

Writers: James D. Solomon, James D. Solomon

Cast:

James McAvoy
–

Frederick Aiken

Robin Wright
–

Mary Surratt

Kevin Kline
–

Edwin Stanton

Evan Rachel Wood
–

Anna Surratt

Tom Wilkinson
–

Reverdy Johnson

Justin Long
–

Nicholas Baker

Danny Huston
–

Joseph Holt

James Badge Dale
–

William Hamilton

Colm Meaney
–

David Hunter

Alexis Bledel
–

Sarah Weston

Johnny Simmons
–

John Surratt

Toby Kebbell
–

John Wilkes Booth

Jonathan Groff
–

Louis Weichmann

Stephen Root
–

John Lloyd

John Cullum
–

Judge Wylie

Taglines:
One bullet killed the President. But not one man.

Details

Official Website:
Official site |

Release Date: 15 April 2011

Filming Locations: 124 Abercorn St, Savannah, Georgia, USA

Box Office Details

Budget: $25,000,000

(estimated)

Opening Weekend: $3,509,048
(USA)
(17 April 2011)
(707 Screens)

Gross: $11,538,204
(USA)
(11 September 2011)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min

Did You Know?

Trivia:

The debut film from The American Film Company; their mission is to make historically accurate films about America's past.

Goofs:

Factual errors:
At the hanging, the nooses are placed loosely around the necks of the condemned prisoners and remain so through-out the hanging. To be effective at a hanging, the noose must be tightened snugly around the neck to prevent the prisoner from slipping out of the noose as the trap was released.

Quotes:

Mary Surratt:
Have you ever believed in something far greater than yourself?

User Review

A very historically accurate, dramatic film.

Rating: 7/10


I had the pleasure of viewing this film at a press screening recently,
as well as hearing an interesting Q&A afterwords. I was very impressed
with this film.

I've read extensively about the topic of the Lincoln assassination, and
came into the theatre expecting another Hollywood style period piece,
one that minces facts and creates story lines where there are none. I
came out feeling very contented, and a little teary. This movie is very
well acted and truly conveys the emotion felt by the characters in
history, unlike some civil war films.

This movie truly is about the struggle between justice and country. I
won't give much away, but the emotional conflicts in this film are very
deep and strong. I was very surprised at James Mcavoy's handling of the
character, and more so his good American accent :D. Robin Wright and
other supporting cast are also superb. Do see this movie when it comes
out! It's a fantastic drama that will keep you at the edge of your
seat, mixed in with fantastic period details. Any fan of American
history and the civil war will enjoy this.