I'm pretty sure most everybody knows the story, but okay,
**************SPOILERS AHEAD**************
It seems some reviewers are criticizing "Parkland" for not being the movie they wanted it to be - in other words, it doesn't argue their conspiracy theory angle. No, it's not a movie that wallows in conspiracy theories. What it does do is present the impact of the JFK assassination on a group of people we normally don't hear about: the doctors and nurses at the hospital, the secret service agents, Oswald's brother and mother, the people at the Dallas FBI office, and Abraham Zapruder and his family. In my opinion it presents these stories extremely well.
The film is a moment-by-moment observation of what happened to these people on the day of the assassination and the days that followed. It reveals some fascinating details that may surprise even those who are well read on the topic. For example, we see Zapruder begin filming and get a look through his camera as the motorcade approaches, but then the director focuses on Zapruder as the shots are fired. Even those barely familiar with the assassination probably know the actual shooting only took a few seconds, but in the scene we live those seconds with Zapruder, and it's startling how lightning fast those seconds speed by. The audience is left dazed and numb at what has just happened, just like Zupruder and the others on the grassy knoll.
The Parkland hospital emergency room is literally stormed by the Secret Service, and the staff, who were chatting and relaxing a moment earlier, suddenly have the President's bloody body thrust before them. The director does a great job creating a palpable "you are there" feeling, allowing us to eavesdrop on the operating room and notice little details like Jackie's pill box hat riding atop JFK's body as he is wheeled in, or sharing the surprise when the doctor notices the President is wearing a lumbar support. Reading about the confrontation between the Dallas medical examiner and the Secret Service is one thing, but the scene as presented by the director is full of tension, anger and testosterone. Every scene at the hospital is absolutely compelling and perfectly paced.
The subplots involving Robert Oswald and the local FBI agents were also really well done, and the script cleverly weaves these two stories together near the end of the film.
I've done more than my fair share of reading on the topic, and it's obvious there was a conspiracy, but that's not the point of the film. No movie can do everything, and film makers who try to jam too much into a 90 minute film are foolish. I didn't see any lies or blatant distortions. What I did see was a riveting and compassionate look at a horrible event in US history. "Parkland" is brilliantly successful at what it sets out to do, and that's the only criteria upon which it should be judged.
**************SPOILERS AHEAD**************
It seems some reviewers are criticizing "Parkland" for not being the movie they wanted it to be - in other words, it doesn't argue their conspiracy theory angle. No, it's not a movie that wallows in conspiracy theories. What it does do is present the impact of the JFK assassination on a group of people we normally don't hear about: the doctors and nurses at the hospital, the secret service agents, Oswald's brother and mother, the people at the Dallas FBI office, and Abraham Zapruder and his family. In my opinion it presents these stories extremely well.
The film is a moment-by-moment observation of what happened to these people on the day of the assassination and the days that followed. It reveals some fascinating details that may surprise even those who are well read on the topic. For example, we see Zapruder begin filming and get a look through his camera as the motorcade approaches, but then the director focuses on Zapruder as the shots are fired. Even those barely familiar with the assassination probably know the actual shooting only took a few seconds, but in the scene we live those seconds with Zapruder, and it's startling how lightning fast those seconds speed by. The audience is left dazed and numb at what has just happened, just like Zupruder and the others on the grassy knoll.
The Parkland hospital emergency room is literally stormed by the Secret Service, and the staff, who were chatting and relaxing a moment earlier, suddenly have the President's bloody body thrust before them. The director does a great job creating a palpable "you are there" feeling, allowing us to eavesdrop on the operating room and notice little details like Jackie's pill box hat riding atop JFK's body as he is wheeled in, or sharing the surprise when the doctor notices the President is wearing a lumbar support. Reading about the confrontation between the Dallas medical examiner and the Secret Service is one thing, but the scene as presented by the director is full of tension, anger and testosterone. Every scene at the hospital is absolutely compelling and perfectly paced.
The subplots involving Robert Oswald and the local FBI agents were also really well done, and the script cleverly weaves these two stories together near the end of the film.
I've done more than my fair share of reading on the topic, and it's obvious there was a conspiracy, but that's not the point of the film. No movie can do everything, and film makers who try to jam too much into a 90 minute film are foolish. I didn't see any lies or blatant distortions. What I did see was a riveting and compassionate look at a horrible event in US history. "Parkland" is brilliantly successful at what it sets out to do, and that's the only criteria upon which it should be judged.