PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Venture behind the true story of one of the world’s most famous assassinations as Lionsgate debuts The Conspirator on Blu-ray Disc, 2-Disc DVD, Digital Download and On Demand this August. Oscar®-winning director Robert Redford (Best Director, Ordinary People, 1980) gives viewers a front-row seat in the thrilling courtroom battle waged against Mary Surratt (Golden Globe® nominee Robin Wright*), the only female charged in the murder of President Abraham Lincoln.. The film costars Golden Globe® nominee James McAvoy** as the attorney who reluctantly takes on Surratt’s defense, and who becomes her biggest ally as government forces align to bring her down. Featuring an all-star supporting cast including Kevin Kline (A Fish Called Wanda), Danny Huston (X-Men Origins: Wolverine), Evan Rachel Wood (HBO’s “True Blood”), Justin Long (Going the Distance) and two-time Oscar® nominee Tom Wilkinson,*** Lionsgate presents The Conspirator in a deluxe Blu-ray Disc and 2-Disc DVD that both contain in-depth special features, including a feature-length documentary about the plot to kill Lincoln, interviews with the cast and crew plus numerous featurettes that look at the making of the film and the true story it captures. The Blu-ray version of the film also includes a video commentary (instead of the audio commentary) with Robert Redford and image galleries. Housed in collectible embossed, foil stamped packaging for a limited time, The Conspirator Blu-ray Disc and 2-Disc DVD are available on August 16th for the suggested retail price of $39.99 and $29.95, respectively.
In the wake of the assassination of President Lincoln in 1865, a country mourns its leader, and eight people are charged with conspiring to kill the President, Vice President and Secretary of State. The lone woman accused, Mary Surratt (Wright), owns the boarding house where the attack was planned. Faced with a certain death, Surratt’s only hope comes in the form of a newly minted lawyer and Union war hero, Frederick Aiken (McAvoy), who reluctantly agrees to defend Surratt before a military tribunal. As the courtroom trial unfolds, Aiken realizes his client may be innocent and that she is being used as bait in order to capture the only conspirator to have escaped a massive manhunt, her son (Johnny Simmons, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World).
* Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture, Forrest Gump, 1995
** Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture – Drama, Atonement, 2008
*** Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role, Michael Clayton, 2007; Best Actor in a Leading Role, In the Bedroom, 2001
BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES*
· Video commentary with Director Robert Redford
· “The Conspirator: The Plot to Kill Lincoln” – feature-length documentary
· Introduction to the American Film Company
· “Making of” featurette- Interviews with Cast and Crew
· Introduction to the History Behind the Film featurette
· Production Design featurette
· Costume Design featurette
· Props and Special Effects featurette
· “The Conspiracy” featurette
· “Mary Surratt’s Catholicism” featurette
· Military Trial featurette
· “Frederick Aiken: Defense Lawyer” featurette
· “Mary Surratt: Guilty or Innocent” featurette
· “Sentence and Execution” featurette
· Photo galleries
*Subject to change
2-DISC DVD SPECIAL FEATURES*
· Audio commentary with Director Robert Redford
· “The Conspirator: The Plot to Kill Lincoln” – feature-length documentary
· Introduction to the American Film Company
· “Making of” featurette – Interviews with Cast and Crew
· Introduction to the History Behind the Film featurette
· Production Design featurette
· Costume Design featurette
· Props and Special Effects featurette
· “The Conspiracy” featurette
· “Mary Surratt’s Catholicism” featurette
· Military Trial featurette
· “Frederick Aiken: Defense Lawyer” featurette
· “Mary Surratt: Guilty or Innocent” featurette
· “Sentence and Execution” featurette
