JFK

Quite possibly the most inspirational film you'll ever see. On the other hand, it's by all accounts Stone's total magnum opus, with by far the best last line in a film, delivered by an appealingly unflappable idealist with the face of Kevin Costner. It's a hell of a job to make a politically engaged film that doesn't come across as mainstream and is as believable as possible. I wouldn’t say I agree with Stone's complete interpretation, but the overall scope and form of his historical research is breathtaking. (04/03/2020)

One first-class acting performance next to another over unsettling images of American history. But above all it's nothing more than unnecessarily heartrending personal storyline of the main character, an unjustified enormous running time, incoherent narration of the individual scenes, and plot twists. It's as if Oliver Stone is frantically reading to me from a densely written notebook and occasionally jumping into another one where the same script is being written by someone completely different at a completely time. (18/07/2022)

It makes absolutely no difference whether what is presented here is actually true or just one of many conspiracy theories. The way everything is presented, the way the performances are strong - Sissy Spacek has never been more beautiful - you still get a strong impression from it, especially about the fact that we're just puppets. Oliver Stone at his best. (25/02/2016)

I watched a three and a half hour long film, in which they actually talk all the time, and I wasn't bored for even a second. Does that say enough about how riveting JFK is? I hope so. Oliver Stone has masterfully handled the material and turned a script that could easily have seemed like a simple conspiratorial pub tale about the good guys and the villains into a believable story. The film literally engrossed me during the opening title sequence (a perfect montage of real and newly created shots underlined by the fantastic Williams) and until the end it kept offering something new that made it worth watching breathlessly. And the cast... Just great. (02/12/2011)

The prime suspect in the Kennedy assassination? Oliver Stone!:-) I didn't know much about the incident in question, I never doubted the rottenness of the American government, and yet the film managed to captivate and appeal to me to such an extent that I look forward to 2029 to see the revelation of all the information by the CIA, even though I’ll be fifteen years older and bald by then. Anyway, with this film, Stone not only reaffirmed to me that he is an extravagant who has no problem with three hours full of dialogue, but with his offensive speech he put in my head a rather clear view of American democracy, defined solely by the malice of the powerful (and the gay:-)) and the vision of self-interest. Also, fitting perfectly among all this "crap" are the loving husband and tenacious detective Kevin Costner, the smarmy villain Gary Oldman, the male-loving Tommy Lee Jones and the usual suspect Joe Pesci, whose great performances only add to the quality and historical value of JFK. 95% (31/08/2013)