By imagining a plausible world in which World War II is avoided when an American populist president cozies up to Hitler, The Plot Against America becomes an effective allegory for all the ways well-meaning citizens gradually allow fascists to take power. Every perspective espoused by the Levins—a Jewish family grappling with the new president’s endorsement of anti-Semitism—is treated as just one partially correct response that’s ultimately just too little, too late. These ideological discussions that make up the heart of the miniseries are nevertheless filmed on a grand scale, and played with real fervor by an ensemble cast that includes Morgan Spector, Zoe Kazan, Winona Ryder, and John Turturro.
"Minkie Spiro and Thomas Schlamme divvy up the directing duties... Both do an exceptional job of capturing the period, along with the production and costume designers, with a sense of understatement and grace."
— Jen Chaney
"How Simon escalates the story, and just how close to home the series hits, is yet to be seen. But "The Plot Against America" is off to a promising beginning - if not in content, then in form."
— Jude Dry
An alternate American history told through the eyes of a working-class Jewish family in New Jersey, as they watch the political rise of Charles Lindbergh, an aviator-hero and xenophobic populist, who becomes president and turns the nation toward fascism.
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Watching it with dread and depression Oct. 1 2024.