Natalie Portman Peter Sarsgaard Greta Gerwig Billy Crudup John Hurt Richard E. Grant
The opening scene: A black screen and loud, dirge-like music with sound winding
down like someone stopping an old phonograph player clues you in for the
mournful tragedy that is to follow.
In Jackie, director Pablo
Larrain has created an artistically rendered film that pays homage to
Jacqueline Kennedy, wife of slain President John F. Kennedy, and the aftermath
of his assassination. We get a
behind-the-scenes view of her efforts in planning his funeral, the many
resistances she encounters, the conflicts she has with some, and the intrusive
advice she receives, regarding funeral planning and her children for instance,
from so many. Above all, we see an
intelligent woman whom many considered shallow and pretentious take the helm
and manage to honor her husband in the way she wanted, which was based partly
on her keen knowledge of history but as well on her own deeply felt, genuine
emotions.
Larrain jumps around in time perhaps to help
convey an impressionist “painting” of the woman and give the viewer a sense of
the turbulence experienced by the country after the assassination. Scenes are interspersed with an
interview conducted by “A Journalist” (Crudup)—presumably Theodore H. White, a
family friend—whom Jackie had asked soon after his death to write about John
Kennedy’s legacy for Life Magazine.
This is apparently where the comparison was made with their years in the
White House as “Camelot”, the subject of a Broadway Play, the last song of
which was Kennedy’s favorite.
Jackie wanted the article to convey the import of the song: “Don’t let it be forgot, that once
there was a spot, for one brief shining moment that was known as Camelot.”
Other scenes portray Jackie’s interactions with
Bobby Kennedy (Sarsgaard); her efforts, assisted by William Walton (Grant), in
restoring the White House; poignant moments of intense grief and loss; and
conversations with a priest (Hurt) during a stroll in Arlington Cemetery.
The film is a tour de force for actress Natalie
Portman as Jackie. She is in
virtually every scene, and gives us a convincing picture of a beautiful,
intelligent, accomplished woman of great complexity who could dismiss the most
presumptuous adversary with a terse, incisive comment. At the same time, Portman needed to
show the Southern and Catholic influences in Jackie’s background, along with
that of privileged wealth.
Peter
Sarsgaard doesn’t look much like Robert Kennedy, but it is easy to see the
resemblance in his actions and tone, whether he is grieving for his brother,
supporting the widow, or voicing his anger and disappointment about the
curtailment of what he hoped would be a brilliant and lasting legacy. Billy Crudup as the sometimes cheeky
journalist challenging and complimenting his interviewee shows us the
awkwardness of the situation, his attempts to maintain objectivity, and finally
succumbing to her charm. Greta Gerwig's performance as Jackie's lifelong friend and White House Secretary is nuanced and appropriately low key.
Mica Levi’s music and Stephane Fontaine’s
cinematography support and enhance the excruciating drama played out on the
screen, and Noah Oppenheim’s screenplay is an even-handed, historically
accurate commentary on the “Camelot” years of John and Jacqueline Kennedy. Pablo Larrain’s synthesis of all the
components into a captivating whole should earn him praise and justifiable
award consideration.
An insightful, artistic portrayal of a
sometimes controversial American legend.
Grade: A By Donna
R. Copeland
No comments:
Post a Comment