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The Conspirator [DVD Boxset] [Collector's Edition]

2 discs
Region 1 USA/CA (info)

Robert Redford focuses on the chaotic moment in history directly following President Lincoln's assassination to tell the story of the proud mother charged with committing the monumental crime, and the ambitious young lawyer who reluctantly becomes her defense attorney. The Civil War has ended, and upon returning home, Union War hero Frederick Aiken (James McAvoy) endeavors to enter the world of politics by establishing himself as a lawyer. Though a high-society ball provides Aiken with the unique opportunity to gain an audience with standing Secretary of War Edwin Stanton (Kevin Kline), history intervenes when John Wilkes Booth fires the fateful bullet that ends the president's life. The nation is soon engulfed in turmoil as a massive manhunt for Booth's collaborators commences, leading lawmen to Confederate sympathizer Mary Surratt (Robin Wright), whose son John has become a prime suspect, yet remains dubiously out of reach. Meanwhile, as the American public cries out for justice, former attorney general Reverdy Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) persuades Aiken to act as Mrs. Surratt's defense lawyer, and the mounting pressure both in and out of the courtroom begins to weigh on the conflicted barrister's conscience as the pressure turns up on John to give himself up, and save his mother from paying for his crime in the gallows. Kevin Kline, Alexis Bledel, Evan Rachel Wood, and Justin Long co-star.
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Credits

Robin, Wright Penn, Robin Wright, James McAvoy, Tom Wilkinson, Evan, Rachel Wood, Kevin Kline, Alexis Bledel
Critic Reviews

"[T]he movie is handsomely shot, in muted tones that resemble history-book illustrations from the 1930's..."
Movieline
"[T]he resolution and strength of Wright's unimpeachable performance makes the whole story seem flesh-and-blood real..."
Los Angeles Times
3 stars out of 4 -- "[A]n unusually literate and thoughtful historical film....The film depends on Wright and McAvoy for its human appeal."
Chicago Sun-Times
3.5 stars out of 5 -- "A thriller that's riveting from start to finish....Redford has crafted a revealing look at a key chapter in our nation's history that you only thought you knew."
Box Office
3 stars out of 4 -- "The film pivots on McAvoy's powerfully implosive perofrmance....His scenes with Wright, under Redford's nuanced guidance, give this film its timely resonance and its grieving heart."
Rolling Stone