Jackie
(2016/Fox Blu-ray w/DVD)
Picture:
B/C+ Sound: B/C+ Extras: C Film: B
Telling
the story (or stories) of the dynasty of politics and power that is
the Kennedy Family has not been an easy one, not helped by the soap
opera TV presentations and now, phony pseudo-documentaries about
them, but key stories that reveal the honest truth, heart and soul of
the significance of their influence on making the United States the
greatest country in the world and how that was too much of a threat
to certain darker powers around has yet to be fully explored.
However, Pablo Larrain's Jackie (2016) dares to take on the
subject of what Jacqueline Kennedy had to endure immediately after
her husband was assassinated right next to her and is a stunningly
successful drama that is easily one of 2016's best films.
Mixed
with a famous TV interview where Jackie (the underrated Natalie
Portman in one of her greatest performances yet) shows the nation the
White House like never before, we go back and fourth between her
interview with the reporter of that landmark interview (Billy Crudup)
and her life just after JFK was mysteriously killed.
At
first, this could go into any direction, be a drag, a run-on piece or
worse, but Portman Immediately transforms into the title icon, a clue
that we may be in for something special like we have never seen
before. She is unbelievable, then the solid screenplay by Noah
Oppenheim goes deep deep and boldly into her private space, the lives
of her and all those around here and is so palpably realistic that
you do feel like you are there. There is also her talks with her
priest (the late, great John Hurt in one of his last roles), Bobby
Kennedy (the ever-under-appreciated Peter Sarsgaard and a fine
supporting cast that also includes Greta Gerwig. At 100 minutes,
this actually seems to short, but the makers get to the point on
everything and once you start to get into it, you cannot stop.
But
back to Portman. Here she is reuniting with Producer Darren
Aranofsky, the great director who directed her in her Best Actress
performance in Black Swan. They obviously have an excellent
chemistry together, even if he did not helm this film, something
Larrain handles just fine. Aranofsky gets how good Portman is, even
if many tended to think of her as just a commercial actress early on.
These are great filmmakers with more to come, true artists, and we
are hopefully witnessing the beginning of a long run of unforgettable
work. Save a few small issues I had that are not worth getting into
(i.e., distractions, spoilers), Jackie is one of the few must-sees of
late and I highly recommend it.
The
1080p 1.66 X 1 AVC @ 35 MBPS digital High Definition image transfer
is shot in the underrated Super 16mm film format, save some moments
of black and white video made to imitate analog video of the time and
various kinds of stylized touches to further evoke the period.
Director
of Photography Stephane Fontaine A.F.C., uses advanced Kodak Vision 3
color negative film stocks to deliver a film that looks so good, it
shames most HD shoots and some 35mm shoots of late. Composition is
often impressive and it all makes the already amazing recreation of
history that more involving. The anamorphically enhanced 1.66 X 1
image is not bad for the format, especially where the downgrading is
done.
The
DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 lossless mix on Ariadne
is well mixed and presented, with anything dialogue-based usually
accompanied by subtle sounds and excellent music throughout. The
lossy Dolby Digital 5.1 on the DVD is not bad, but it loses the
warmth and impact of the DTS.
Extras
include Digital HD Ultraviolet Copy for PC, PC portable and other
cyber iTunes capable devices (plus a hidden extra from what we hear),
while the discs add a Photo Gallery and Making Of featurette From
Jackie To Camelot.
-
Nicholas Sheffo
