The Conspirator

Directed by: Robert Redford

Written by: James D. Solomon; James D. Solomon, Gregory Bernstein (story)










Most Americans know, at least vaguely, the story of the assassination of President Lincoln by John Wilkes Booth.  Fewer are familiar with the trial of the conspirators who help hatch the plot.

Frederick Aiken (McAvoy) has been tapped to defend Mary Surratt (Wright), who has been accused of harboring the conspirators in her boarding house.  But Aiken quickly finds out that, in the case of a military tribunal, justice may not be easy.  He is further upset when he finds out the entire trial itself may be an attempt to draw out a Surratt's son from hiding, even if it means that she might be executed.

From the standpoint of story, "The Conspirator" weaves an interesting and emotionally charged tale.  There are some interesting questions of ethnics and justice raised, mixed between plot twists (including a big one right near the end).  The actors are solid, even if it felt that they were limited by the script and story itself.

The biggest issue with "The Conspirator" is that it fails to do anything new or novel.  It tells its story in a generally straight and traditional way.  It makes its point clearly, but does not present any new or challenging ways of thinking about the issues.

For better or for worse, "The Conspirator" felt like what it was: a historical drama.  It's good, but could have done much more.

Moneyball

Directed by: Bennett Miller

Written by: Steven Zaillian (screenplay), Aaron Sorkin (screenplay), Stan Chervin (story), Michael Lewis (book)

Michael Lewis's book "Moneyball" shook up the traditional understanding of baseball by introducing the general population to the hard statistical analysis of the game known as "sabermetrics." The narrative focuses on the Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane and his attempt to build a winning team on a limited budget using sabermetrics to identify undervalued players.

The movie "Moneyball" takes the Billy Beane narrative from the book, but abandons essentially all of the history and evolution of baseball statistics. Unfortunately, this leaves "inside references" in the film that only those who have read the book will understand, leaving anyone else to scratch their head and wonder what the characters were talking about. (The most notable example are numerous references to Bill James - the father of sabermetrics - who received significant attention in the book, but is only occasionally referenced.)

This movie came with a lot of baggage, including the epic timeline it took to get produced. From when it was originally announced, directors and actors came and went on a carousel. At one point, Paul DePodesta - a major figure in the book - asked that his name be removed from the film, so the character's name was changed to Peter Brand.

Much of the buzz surrounding the film originally was about Brad Pitt's performance. I have to say he's good, but hard to tell whether Brad Pitt's acting was actually good, or whether he's just playing the same character over and over again. I'm not willing to jump on the Oscar bandwagon for this one, though it's definitely worth an honorable mention. The trade deadline scene is fantastic, though, and may be the key in getting him nominated.

What made the book great was the balance of Billy Beane's personal story and the rise of sabermetric analysis in baseball. Although the film is good, the limited scope removed much of the context. I found myself having to explain several concepts to my wife after the movie - not because she is clueless, but because the movie left them unexplained.

This movie is good, but unless you're a hardcore baseball stat geek, you may need to just roll with the punches at a few points.