ABOVE AVERAGE

THE ASSASSINATION WAS JUST THE BEGINNING.

When President Abraham Lincoln (Hamish Linklater) is shot in 1865 by one of the nation’s most famous actors (Anthony Boyle), War Secretary Edwin Stanton (Tobias Menzies) begins an intense manhunt.

A compelling miniseries that has it both ways: to a great extent it remains true to the facts in terms of historical details and characterizations, but it also throws in conspiracy theories, presenting an insidious plot to remove Lincoln and stop Reconstruction.

As long as you understand what you’re watching, it’s a sharp thriller with an ambition to teach a modern audience lessons about political dangers. Menzies is great as Lincoln’s loyal, asthma-stricken ally.

2024-U.S. 365 min. Color. Created by Monica Beletsky. Book: James L. Swanson. Cast: Tobias Menzies (Edwin Stanton), Anthony Boyle (John Wilkes Booth), Hamish Linklater (Abraham Lincoln), Patton Oswalt, Lovie Simone, Will Harrison, Lili Taylor. 

Trivia: Originally shown in seven episodes, some of which are directed by Carl Franklin and John Dahl (who also served as co-executive producers).

Last word: “The book is nonfiction, and Mr. Swanson documents the assassination night and Booth’s escape in great detail, as well as the soldiers surrounding Booth. I used pretty much all that research in the show. I was lucky enough that the book was available when I had this idea to tell the story through Stanton. But it was a jumping-off point for me to do this cat-and-mouse structure with it and to bring in more of the conspiracy theories around the Lincoln assassination […] Also the unsung African American heroes of the story and the women, that was important to me to show as well.” (Beletsky, Variety)