Review of Jackie (2016) by Mandela W — 21 Jan 2017

Not often do we think about the first lady as much as we think about the president when it comes to presidency. There have been so many famous first ladies from Mary Todd Lincoln, Abigail Adams, Lady Bird Johnson, Nancy Regan, Hilary Clinton, Michelle Obama the list goes on and on. But one of the most famous is none other than Jackie Onasis Kennedy. Both a fashion icon as well as the first lady, yet in the early 1960's not may truly considered the fact that she became a widower she was someone who had lost a husband. "Jackie" is an immersive and mesmerizing picture that takes you into the mind of this mysterious woman who had to handle the loss of the man she loved our 35th president of the United States, John F Kennedy.

The film begins a week after the funeral of JFK in 1963 as Theodore White is interviewing Jackie Kennedy about the entire ordeal and the legacy of her husband. The film however jumps back and forth between the days leading up to the fatal shooting in texas and the time after preparing for the funeral. In those scenes from the past we come to learn more about Jackie Kennedy then we ever did. We see that she wanted to make sure her husband had a proper sendoff at the coming funeral. A sendoff that solidified his legacy and not made him a relic of the past.

This turned out to be such an amazing flick not just on Kennedy but on patriotism, legacy, and history. Pablo larrain amazingly despite being Italian captured this iconic American figure and the patriotic feel of the film. he makes every scene so distinctly honest and personal. He makes you feel like your right there with jackie.

Natalie Portman's performance was hypnotizing. I have never seen a performance that hooks you like it did since Brando in Godfather. You cannot take your eyes off of her and you want to read her thoughts and watch her movement to see what she does next and what she says. Portman portrays Jackie with the upmost emotion and complexity and makes you actually care about the lives of first ladies and how it is for them in the white house. Fantastic work from peter saarsgaard, greta gerwing and the entire cast!

This is so richly shot. the cinematography both shows the intimacy of Jackie's life off camera and the wide spanning love and respect that the American public had for her and her husband. Great lighting and coloring work from the crew, it reminded me of how in color news footage looked like back then. the costuming was really exquisite and brought you back distinctly to the 1960's. Portman looked beautiful in all the dresses.

A great film that reminds us of our history. An absolute must see!