Movie Review: JACKIE

Jackie is a portrait of Jaqueline Kennedy in the period immediately after the assassination of her husband, President John F. Kennedy. The film is directed by Pablo Larraín and stars Natalie Portman in the titular role. The film also stars Peter Sarsgaard, Greta Gerwig, Billy Crudup, and John Hurt. I will confess, at the outset, that I’m not terribly well versed the real history of this period and I can’t speak to Jackie’s accuracy. That said, this is a beautiful and touching film that is absolutely one of the best singular performances I’ve seen in a while.

Movie Review: THE BIRTH OF A NATION (2016)

The Birth of a Nation (2016) is a film that tells the story of Nat Turner, a slave preacher in the South in the early 19^th century who lead a brief but impactful slave uprising. This film is written, directed, and stars Nate Parker. It was very much a passion project of his and made a huge splash at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year breaking records for size of the acquisition deal it got from Fox Searchlight. This film deals with a tough subject area and has some extremely powerful moments but has some trouble in its flow and emotional development and connection as a film.