Director Pablo Larraín told the producers of the new movie "Jackie" he would agree to direct it on the condition that Natalie Portman take on the role - a testament to how much rested on an actress' ability to capture the mythic American icon.
Most critics agree Portman's performance is superb and convincing without being anything like an impersonation, as Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times describes it. On the other hand, you have Anthony Lane of the New Yorker who thinks too many liberties were taken in trying to dramatize Jackie Kennedy's private moments and interior life. Lane writes, "I happen to find the result intrusive, presumptuous, and often absurd, but, for anyone who thinks that all formality is a front, and that the only point of a façade is that it should crack, 'Jackie' delivers a gratifying thrill."
Historians who have studied the Kennedys, including Barbara Perry of the University of Virginia, argue both Jackie and John F. Kennedy were early masters of the media age, skilled at what to hide and what to convey, so any intimate portrait will never be precise. What qualities of Jackie Kennedy do you think are most difficult to emulate?
Guests:
Barbara Perry, Ph.D., Director of Presidential Studies at the University of Virginia; Author, "Jacqueline Kennedy: First Lady of the New Frontier”
Tim Cogshell, Film Critic for KPCC and Alt-Film Guide; he tweets
Christy Lemire, Film Critic for KPCC and Host of YouTube’s “What the Flick?;” she tweets
Charles Solomon, Film Critic for KPCC and Animation Scoop and Animation Magazine