THE CONSPIRATOR

This historical drama directed by Robert Redford from earlier this year demonstrates why you should always give the accused the full benefit of their constitutional rights even if they killed President Lincoln.  Oh Captain My Captain, not Lincoln!  Abraham Lincoln is so beloved in this country that we could never get rid of the penny because we couldn't bare to part with Lincoln's sturdy visage.  Other (older) countries have swallowed their pride and retired their smallest unit of currency, but we just love Honest Abe too damn much to attempt life without him.  Anyway the plot concerns the aftermath of the Lincoln assassination when the conspirators, who planned a larger attack that would topple the federal government, were hunted down and those that survived were tried not by a jury of their peers but by a secret military tribunal.  Ohh.... I get it.  It's topical!

The biggest problem with this movie is that it's part of that strange sub-genre of films where the main character is a just a cog, a boring machine-part, who gets us from point A to point B (literally and metaphorically) and can't do much more.  James McAvoy is perfectly cast as a bowl of vanilla ice cream amidst all the banana splits and hot fudge sundaes, by which I mean, the uniformly excellent supporting performances.  Why am I talking about ice cream?  McAvoy is Freddy Aiken, a 27 year old Union veteran who gets roped into defending Mary Surratt, the owner of a boarding house where the anti-Union plan was hatched, mother of one of the missing co-conspirators, and the only female defendant.

Robin Wright, now sans Penn, plays Surratt as proud, stoic Southern woman who refuses to abandon her principles or her family, and does much less to gain your sympathy than expected.  Maybe that's the point.  You don't have to like her.  You just have to think that it's unfair she was not tried by a jury of her peers, that her lawyer did not have adequate time to prepare her case, or the unfortunate circumstances of their detainment.  All of the accused were furnished with special bags to be fastened over their heads.  The bags had padding stuffed in the ears so that the prisoners were rendered effectively deaf.  It's not all bad though; the bags had a single hole in the front for eating, breathing, and seeing.  None of the soldiers however had the sand to put the bag on Mary's head, so she went without.

Tom Wilkinson, who does a far superior job delivering the type of loud angry speech that a historical courtroom drama requires, really obviously should have been the main character; Maryland Senator Reverdy Johnson was a captivating badass, as he himself points out in the film.  He was opposed to slavery, but he represented the slave-owner in the infamous Dred Scott decision.  He kept his slave-owning state loyal to the union, and as one of Lincoln's friends and pall-bearers, he was in a unique 'only Nixon can go to China' type situation when it came to defending those accused of the first presidential assassination.  Why oh why couldn't he be the main character, and Aiken his loyal sidekick?  When was the last time they let Wilkinson star in a movie?  Was it In The Bedroom?  Didn't he win an Oscar for that?  He didn't?  Damn it!

Lots of actors make small appearances, and some handle historical drama much better than others.  Justin Long (I'm a Mac) seems out of place, but nothing compared to Alexis Bledel, who has a permanent 'deer in the headlights' look and delivers lines like "Secretary Steward is a smart man" with little or no conviction.  Chief O'Brien himself Colm Meaney presides over the trial and does everything in his power to help slippery prosecutor Danny Huston (with no ridiculous wig) hurry things along.  One of The Boondock Saints Norman Reedus is one of the defendants, Stephen Root is an opportunistic drunken old coot who serves as a prosecution 'yes, uh-huh, that's what happened' witness and its always a delight to hear Root's colorful country accents.

There are some even tinier roles for mostly TV people to shine.  James Badge Dale, star of AMC's Rubicon and the guy who spoiler shot Leo in The Departed, Shea Wingham, the sheriff and brother to Steve Buscemi on Boardwalk Empire, Jim True-Frost, the elevator operator in The Hudsucker Proxy and Pryzbylewski on The Wire, and John Cullum, Lee Garner Sr. on Mad Men all have small parts that hint at a richer, starless movie that might have been.

Kevin Kline is supposed to be the centerpiece I think, as the ostensible villain of the story, War Secretary Edwin Stanton.  He has an unusual beard, gruff demeanor, and a belief that swiftly and harshly rounding up and punishing anyone who may have been involved with the assassination plot will fulfill a bifurcated goal: healing the nation, and squelching any chance for further insurrection.  Unfortunately his service to the audience peaks early; when he arrives after Lincoln has been shot, he quickly grows weary of the weeping widow Mary Todd and growls "Get here out of here" shortly before ordering someone to round up (Vice) President Andrew Johnson and reminding "Keep him away from the liquor."

Hi I'm a notorious drunkard.