Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Killing Kennedy Blu-ray Movie Review

The Camelot Factor.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 13, 2014

The 20th century had a number of epochal events which not only consumed copious newsprint, but which also provided fodder for a number of other media. The sinking of the Titanic, the two World Wars, the Russian Revolution, the Depression, the Cold War, the Atom Bomb, Watergate—so many incredible stories, all of them dutifully written up not just in daily newspapers, but also magazines, scholarly articles, and of course tons of books, radio and television programs and, yes, films. But I’d wager a bet that the Kennedy assassination is, if not the single most investigated event of the century (in any given medium), certainly in the top five or so. It’s been said that Kennedy was the first “television President”, and that phenomenon spilled over into his tragic death, as anyone who was alive and old enough to remember November 22, 1963 will attest. Broadcast television indulged in one of its first round the clock reporting situations, something that stretched from the day Kennedy was shot in Dallas to the weekend where Lee Harvey Oswald was shot and killed by Jack Ruby, and then on to the national day of mourning and the unbelievably moving funeral procession through Washington, D.C., with those indelible images of the resolute and stoic Jackie leading her beautiful young children through the pomp and pageantry.

One might think that such epic tomes as William Manchester’s The Death of a President or even the Warren Report (as lambasted as that report has been in certain circles) might have already described nearly everything that occurred on those fateful days, but (aside from the ubiquitous “conspiracy” books that seem to sprout like weeds, even to this day) evidently noted reporters and researchers missed enough of the story for Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly to enter the fray and write his account of the tragedy, Killing Kennedy, the second in what has been a kind of disturbing franchise of “Killing” books by the pundit. (Martin Dugard is listed as co-author, and one suspects he probably does a lot of the actual writing, though a mere look at any of the collaborators’ dust jackets and the clearly disparate size of the fonts displaying the authors’ names reveals the relative importance O’Reilly is thought to have, perhaps even by O’Reilly himself.) For those who have long been fascinated by the assassination story (whether or not they believe in any of the many conspiracy theories), there’s probably not much new that this National Geographic television adaptation of Killing Kennedy offers. Because of all of the reams of newsprint and typeface that have been devoted to this subject, not to mention a glut of other tangentially related outings like Oliver Stone’s JFK, even those without an overt interest in the story probably know at the very least the broad outlines of the story. Those outlines are certainly here in Killing Kennedy, but the entire telefilm often plays like a kind of Reader’s Digest redaction of the tale, with simultaneously unfolding biographies of Kennedy (Rob Lowe) and Lee Harvey Oswald (Will Rothaar).

Killing Kennedy adopts a sort of “ping pong” approach to its storytelling, going back and forth between the developing dramas of Lee Harvey Oswald and John Fitzgerald Kennedy. We first meet Oswald as an unhappy expat in Russia, seeking to renounce his citizenship, with some none too subtle threats about what he knows as a former radar operator in the Marines. Next up is Kennedy right after New Year’s Day in 1960, preparing to announce his candidacy for the presidency (this may raise some eyebrows, for in today’s political world, candidates tend to announce years ahead of time, not merely months as in this case). These interlinked stories then unfold, though at a mere hour and a half (give or take, in either of the two versions of the telefilm included on this Blu-ray), there’s simply a kind of haphazard, “greatest hits” quality to a lot of what is depicted.

The major problem with Killing Kennedy is that it tends to be surface deep despite what were probably noble intentions. Kennedy’s womanizing, for example, is boiled down to a brusque interchange with Bobby Kennedy (Jack Noseworthy). What are ostensibly huge motivating factors, like the involvement of Jack Ruby (Casey Siemaszko) in Oswald’s death are given incredibly short shrift, relegated to just a line or two of dialogue. Kennedy’s early presidential stumbles are similarly boiled down to an almost laughable “I’m never going to let that happen again” scene. This tendency is most prevalent in the film’s treatment of Oswald. There’s a lot of good stuff here, including Oswald’s halting attempts to integrate into Soviet society, but it’s never put in any really fundamentally developed psychological context. We’re left to infer that Oswald is simultaneously self promoting and self hating, without ever really being given much salient information as to why these dual strains run so rampant in his psyche.

While structurally the telefilm is too rushed to ever really make much of an impact, the performances are rather astoundingly good at times. Rob Lowe is frankly unexpectedly excellent as Kennedy. He has the voice down to a tee, and also has some of JFK’s stiff (due to his back issues) grace. Rothhaar brings a certain sullen, resentful quality to Oswald, even if he’s forced to emit somewhat laughable lines about how Oswald will be forever remembered as having changed the course of history. The supporting cast has decent turns by Ginnifer Goodwin as Jackie and Michelle Trachtenberg as Marina Oswald. Killing Kennedy doesn’t really ever divulge anything new or unexpected, but for those who want a CliffsNotes version of the assassination, it’s a fitfully interesting if unremarkable account of one of the most epochal tragedies in American history.

Killing Kennedy Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Killing Kennedy is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. This is a solid enough looking high definition presentation, even if it rarely pops in any meaningful way. Colors are accurate looking and nicely suffused, and close-ups reveal some excellent levels of fine detail (see screenshots 2 and 7 for good examples). Contrast is dialed a bit low throughout portions of the film, making occasional sequences slightly muddy looking. There are a couple of oddly soft looking moments (when Lee and Marina arrive at an émigré's house is especially noticeable). A couple of sequences, including the factory scene in Russia, have been oddly color graded, which diminishes fine detail somewhat. The film also utilizes various pieces of archival footage, some of which has been anamorphically stretched to fit the widescreen format. This footage varies widely in quality, as should be expected. (It's a bit odd that this approach was taken, as the film's faux "home movies" of the Kennedys are framed at around 1.33:1.) No obvious compression artifacts are apparent in this release.

Killing Kennedy Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Killing Kennedy's lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix is similarly proficient, if also similarly less than completely impressive. Surround activity is limited mostly to ambient environmental noises and the occasional brooding music cue. Otherwise, dialogue is not especially directional, anchored mostly front and center. There are a couple of nice moments of LFE when Oswald first shoots the President and then, a bit later, Officer Tippit. Fidelity is just fine on this track, and there are no hiccups of any kind to address.

Killing Kennedy Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Camelot's End: The Making of Killing Kennedy (1080p; 19:34) is a standard EPK-fest with interviews and clips from the film.


• Killing Kennedy: An Interview with Author Bill O'Reilly (1080p; 6:06). Big surprise here: it's all about Bill O'Reilly, including the actors and the production.


• The Kennedy Mystique (1080p; 6:38) features more interviews with the cast and crew opining on what Kennedy meant to America and the world.


• Virginia is for Lovers: Tourism Commercial (1080i; 00:16). Yes, folks, there's nothing like touring Virginia after assassinating a President!


• Broadcast (1080p; 1:27:40) and Extended (1080p; 1:29:56) Versions of the Film

Killing Kennedy Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Without putting too fine a point on it, you could probably dredge up as much material as Killing Kennedy offers with a more or less random accessing of clips on YouTube. This is a fairly by the numbers approach, offering little in the way of insight or even perspective. The best part of this telefilm is Lowe's rather uncanny impersonation of President Kennedy. Bill O'Reilly is famous for insisting "the spin stops here", but not even copious amounts of spin could make Killing Kennedy seem anything other than the mediocre, lackluster outing it is.