Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on October 2012

The adage “Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it” was clearly on Robert Redford’s mind when he made this film. It’s a legal procedural about the trial of boardinghouse proprietor Mary Surratt (Robin Wright) for her alleged involvement in the Lincoln assassination. Her guilt or innocence is irrelevant. The point is that she, a civilian, was tried by a military tribunal instead of by a jury, as guaranteed by the Constitution, setting a legal precedent that still plagues us today (Gitmo). Literate, thoughtful, well acted (James McAvoy, Tom Wilkinson, Kevin Kline)—and dull as dirt.