JFK

There are at least two important factors to consider when reviewing any film "based on a true story." The first is how well the movie plays as a coherent, compelling narrative. The second is whether the film is factually accurate.

Oliver Stone's 'JFK' does remarkably well in the first regard. Despite its three hour running time, the story races by, mixing numerous characters and events and both personal and public struggles without losing its center. That center is Jim Garrison, played without misstep by Kevin Costner. 'JFK' is at heart a story of one man's - New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison - search for truth among a veritable mountain range of opposition. Even amid countless pieces of evidence given through excellently edited testimony, flashback, and whispered secrets, Stone never forgets that heart.

As for the second barometer, factual accuracy, 'JFK' is at very best suspect. Though the period set design, costuming, and locations are pitch perfect, the 'evidence' of a massive conspiracy to kill and cover up the murder of President Kennedy is strung together from Garrison's own questionable account and those of like-minded theorists. The film cannot be taken at face value as historical truth. It must be watched as one man's version of reality and his struggle to make that reality known. In that respect, it is an unbridled success.

YES (8/10)