Rated PG-13 for some violent content.
Starring James McAvoy, Robin Wright, Evan Rachel Wood, Kevin Kline and Justin Long
Directed by Robert Redford (Lions for Lambs, The Legend Of Bagger Vance, and The Horse Whisperer)
I love history…I hate political (liberal) movies.
In the wake of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, seven men and one woman are arrested and charged with conspiring to kill the President, Vice President, and Secretary of State. The lone woman charged, Mary Surratt (Robin Wright), owns a boarding house where John Wilkes Booth (Toby Kebbell), and others met and planned the simultaneous attacks. Against the ominous backdrop of post-Civil War Washington, newly-minted lawyer Frederick Aiken (James McAvoy), a 28-year-old Union war hero, reluctantly agrees to defend Surratt before a military tribunal. 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, John (Johnny Simmons). As the nation turns against her, Surratt is forced to rely on Aiken to uncover the truth and save her life.
OK, so here’s what most of us know about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln: The actor/assassin John Wilkes Booth shoots the U.S. president in a theatre box, leaps to the stage and declares, “Sic semper tyrannis!” before making his escape, stage right, to his waiting horse. The assassination, the death of Booth in a shootout, and the roundup of the conspirators happen in quick clips, followed by a montage of newspaper headlines, declaring the nation in a state of shock and grief. Then it’s a fight to get comfortable…but not too comfortable – because you might just doze off.
What the film does well is fill in the cracks and missing pieces of the conspiracy to bring down a nation. The movie is well-researched and the locations and costumes are amazing.
What the film does poorly is allow Director Robert Redford to draw too many parallels between the post-Civil War assassins and the post-9/11 terrorists (especially those in Guantanamo). Once the cat is out of the bag, I checked out.
Although the cast is talented and polished, it just became more and more difficult to watch. I wish I would have Skipped It.
SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
This is a political/courtroom drama with little language, no sex and mild violence.
Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):
Q: What’s the message/theme of this movie?
A: When you get right down to it, The Conspirator’s message is that even when it may be unpopular, we must do the right thing.
Q: How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
A: As Christians we often find ourselves in situations that are unpopular. Take a minute or two to list some of those situations.
- What are some of the things that happen when we take a stand that is unpopular?
- What were some of the things that happened to Frederick? How did Frederick respond?
- How should we respond?
Q: How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?
A: One of the biggest things we can do when we are faced with standing up for something that is not very popular is to never give up. Be strong. Little by little as you gain wisdom from God’s Word, you’ll begin to see the results.
Read Hebrews 12:1-3, “And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up.” (NLT)
What does running with endurance look like in your particular situation? What is one thing you can do this week to remain strong?
