Daytripper

Surprised there is no thread here yet about this film. Caught it this morning at a packed theater, which surprised me. Really enjoyed it (in spite of Justin Long and a Gilmore girl in it). Redford did a great job directing and both McAvoy and Write were terrific. Overall rating, 8/10.

gmanca

Would you say it's heavy on the courtroom drama, specifically the yelling? I used to be a sucker for that but now it just grates the hell out of me.

Daytripper

Very much heavy on the courtroom drama, but not that much yelling. Plus, there are many scenes outside of the courtroom during the trial (including flashbacks), so it moves at a nice clip.

gmanca

Ah ok, thanks for the description, I'll definitely watch it tomorrow.

Daytripper

Make sure it's a matinee price, if you're on the fence. Again, my theater was near full. And it was a pretty big theater. And half the audience applauded at the end. Something I haven't experienced in a while.

Patman

On the footsteps of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln comes the hunt for not only the shooter, but those who helped him with the deadly deed. "The Conspirator" deals with the swift call for justice on any and all possible conspirators tried in a military tribunal, not civilian court. James McAvoy plays Frederick Aiken, a war hero and young lawyer put in place to defend Mary Surratt (Robin Wright) - the lone female amongst the other alleged o-conspirators, albeit without vigor nor zeal. The more Aiken digs into the case, the more he uncovers, and his certainty of Mary's guilt becomes shaken.

Robert Redford directed this film, and there is painstaken attention paid to the look and feel of the mid-1860s, but the film has this one-note tone to it, and failed to engage me. But if you're a history buff, it's worth a matinee viewing.

I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.

Groucho

Worse than Atlas Shrugged? Really??

TheMovieman

Watched this today and thought it was alright. Fine performances from McAvoy and Wright but it's also one-note douchbag role for Danny Huston once again (has he ever been cast as a good, upstanding guy?). And I know it was a fairly small part, but I couldn't take Justin Long seriously in his role..

Anyway, it's a finely directed picture from Redford with excellent production design — a shoe-in for an Oscar nomination if I ever saw one — and a well told story, though in the end it's not that memorable.

***¾/*****, (B+, 7.6/10, 3/4)

Daytripper

Agree with Justin Long. WTF was Redford thinking casting that tool? Just like Justin Timberlake in "The Social Network". Neither deserve to be in a serious movie. And both brought both films to a screeching halt for me when they were on screen.

godzilla rules

I hated this movie. I thought the performances were fine, but the feel of the movie was all wrong. I wish that had made the movie about the hunt for Booth instead of this courtroom BS.

One star out of four. Possibly one of the worst movies of the year.

TheMovieman

Can't agree about the rating, but I would love to see a movie about the hunt for Booth as well.

Daytripper

They need to make "Manhunt" into a movie. Great book!

http://www.amazon.com/Manhunt-12-Day.../dp/0060518499

JimRochester

Saw this last night on Blu and was underwhelmed. It wasn't a bad movie, it was more suitable as a PBS documentary with A-listers. The 67 minute documentary on the disc was more informative and more entertaining. For the quality of the performances and the set pieces I'd agree it's at least a C+. For the actual storyline I found it boring. Nobody really knows if she was a true conspirator, was oblivious or somewhere in between. Yes she was railroaded at the trial but it was so long ago it's not like it has any merit in today's world.