Matthew Macfadyen delivers a masterful performance in the new historical miniseries Death by Lightning, portraying Charles Guiteau, the man who assassinated US President James Garfield in 1881. The Succession star brings his trademark skill for playing pitiable losers to a new level, capturing Guiteau's desperation and delusion with brilliance.
The four-part series focuses on Guiteau, a fantasist and serial non-payer of bills who believes his name will one day be known across America. Macfadyen portrays him as a wild-eyed, scraggly-bearded crank who ping-pongs from one humiliation to the next, from being denied a loan to being rejected by women even in a free love commune. His performance is both comic and tragic, especially in a meeting with Garfield that reveals the emptiness inside Guiteau.
Michael Shannon plays Garfield, a quietly extraordinary statesman who wins the Republican nomination despite not being on the ballot, thanks to a rousing speech. The series contrasts Garfield's principled campaign with the corrupt Republican elite, including Shea Whigham's bullying Roscoe Conkling and Nick Offerman's portrayal of Chester Arthur, a violent, vomiting man who becomes vice-president out of political necessity. Offerman is both funny and vulnerable, showing the shame beneath Arthur's boorish exterior.
While Death by Lightning struggles to give Garfield as compelling a narrative, and its female characters are underdeveloped, the series excels in its portrayal of Guiteau. Macfadyen's performance is the highlight, making this a punchy and engaging historical drama.
