JFK (1991)

New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison discovers there's more to the Kennedy assassination than the official story.

Director:

Oliver Stone

Writers:

Oliver Stone (screenplay), Zachary Sklar (screenplay)

Stars:

Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Jack Lemmon

Won 2 Oscars. Another 17 wins & 41 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sally Kirkland	...	Rose Cheramie
Anthony Ramirez	...	Epileptic
Ray LePere	...	Zapruder
Steve Reed	...	John F. Kennedy - Double
Jodie Farber	...	Jackie Kennedy - Double (as Jodi Farber)
Columbia Dubose	...	Nellie Connally - Double
Randy Means	...	Gov. Connally - Double
Kevin Costner	...	Jim Garrison
Jay O. Sanders	...	Lou Ivon
E.J. Morris	...	Plaza Witness #1
Cheryl Penland	...	Plaza Witness #2
Jim Gough	...	Plaza Witness #3
Perry R. Russo	...	Angry Bar Patron
Mike Longman	...	TV Newsman #1
Edward Asner	...	Guy Bannister

Storyline

On November 22, 1963, president John F. Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald is arrested for the crime and subsequently shot by Jack Ruby, supposedly avenging the president's death. An investigation concludes that Lee Harvey Oswald and Jack Ruby acted alone in their respective crimes, but Louisiana district attorney Jim Garrison is skeptical. Assembling a trusted group of people, Garrison conducts his own investigation, bringing about backlash from powerful government and political figures.

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Plot Keywords:

investigation | president | assassination | assassination of president | conspiracy | 

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Taglines:

He's a District Attorney. He will risk his life, the lives of his family, everything he holds dear for the one thing he holds sacred... the truth.

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Genres:

Drama | History | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Oliver Stone Site

Country:

France USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

20 December 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Project X

Filming Locations:

Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$40,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,223,658, 18 August 2012, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$70,405,498

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$205,405,498

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.,Canal+,Regency Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

189 min 206 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The real Jim Garrison never made the speech that Costner makes at the end of the movie. It was taken from several speeches that he gave, and some of it from his book.

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Goofs

Garrison talks about hobo arrests and implies that they conspired to kill Kennedy. The three tramps had no connection to the assassination. Their names were Harry Doyle, John Gedney, and Gus Abrams.

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Quotes

[first lines]
title card: "To sin by silence when we should protest makes cowards of men." - Ella Wheeler Wilcox
President Eisenhower: ...We have been compelled to create a permanent armaments industry of vast proportions. And to do this three and a half million men and women are directly engaged in the defense establishement. We annually spend on military security alone...
Narrator: January, 1961. President Dwight D. Eisenhowers's Farewell Address to the Nation.
President Eisenhower: ...This conjunction of an immense military establishment and arms industry ...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

Closing statement: What Is Past Is Prologue

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Alternate Versions

Guy Bannister and his secretary talk briefly about Oswald and laugh.

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Connections

Featured in Frontline: Who Was Lee Harvey Oswald? (1993)

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Soundtracks

Scratch My Hide
Written and Performed by Brent Lewis
From the recording: Earth Tribe Rhythms
Courtesy of Ikauma Records

User Reviews

Thrilling film

The first film in Oliver Stone's films about the American presidency, JFK is a historical drama exploring a popular conspiracy theory regarding John F. Kennedy's assassination, adapted from the books On the Trail of the Assassins by Jim Garrison and Crossfire: The Plot That Killed Kennedy by Jim Marrs. On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed in Dallas, Texas, allegedly by Lee Harvey Oswald (Gary Oldman). The inciting incident occurs when New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison notices several inaccuracies in the Warren Report (the official investigation of the assassination) and decides to reexamine the case of Kennedy's death. Garrison and his team pursue the truth at all costs, and eventually take Kennedy's death to court to ask: who really is responsible for killing the President?

Clocking in at more than three hours, the film has a definite focus on its story, with every element of the film being used to further the plot. Garrison is a modern hero in the film, a city DA that rises to the enormous challenge of investigating the President's assassination. Kevin Costner seems to perfectly capture this type of character (also achieving a thick, charming southern accent) and connecting with the viewers. He is surrounded by an all-star supporting cast, all of which truly become the real life figures they portray. Stone writes believable and engaging dialogue, but since the film focuses so heavily on story, he spends little time developing the characters. Oliver Stone is a controversial director, and his style can be very polarizing, but personally, I enjoyed his strange method of storytelling. The costumes seemed appropriate for the setting, and the set designs were extraordinary, particularly the recreations of 1960s city streets such as Dallas and New Orleans.

John Williams was responsible for writing the film's score, and was nominated for an Oscar for his efforts. Williams was busy writing the score for Hook around the same time, so he actually wrote themes for the film before the film was shot. This resulted in Stone cutting and editing the film to the music, instead of the typical method of fitting the music to the film. Williams gives JFK a tragic, but heroic theme, but also incorporates pulsing synthesizers for the investigative scenes (an unusual tactic for the composer). This resulted in an effective score and a seamless integration with the film. The cinematography was unusual, but played a very important role in the story. The film opens with a montage of newsreel clips from JFK's presidency. It slowly intersperses Stone's own clips, but the lighting and coloring (black-and-white and grainy film) make the clips all seem genuine. Much of the film is shot in this manner, giving a very real sense to the story, very similar to a documentary. I can honestly say this film would not have been the same had it not been for this unique approach to cinematography.

JFK (rated R) contains strong language throughout, and the assassination scenes may be too graphic for young viewers. The 3-hour runtime will bore some; however, any lover of historical dramas or investigative thrillers will finish the film asking for more. The film is an emotional journey, and viewers will always find themselves rooting for Garrison and his seemingly impossible quest. I give this film a B+, finding it "guilty" of keeping me on the edge of my seat.