The film directed by Pablo Larraín and starring Natalie continues to generate news every week. Here are a few as Tidbits.
-First, a photo of “Jackie team”, taken during the screening of the movie for BAFTA members, a few days ago:
-We have the first “behind the scenes” picture, made during the shooting in Paris last year:
-The film has also been added to AFI Fest, which will be held in November.
-And finally, movie has screened in some festivals last days (Middleburg, Savannah, Philadelphia…), and here we have a couple of new rave reviews:
Natalie Portman plays Jacqueline Kennedy and delivers, without question, the best performance of her career. Adopting Mrs. Kennedy’s breathy voice and socialite accent, Ms. Portman dissolves into the role. She occupies almost every frame of Larraín’s film, and we are captivated every step of the way.Jackie*is not a biopic, but rather a glimpse into a few terrible days in Jackie Kennedy’s life; days filled with many questions and few answers; days where she washes her husband’s blood from her hair and sets about enshrining the growing legend of her late husband.
All of these elements — the strong across-the-board supporting cast, the breathtaking cinematography, the unsettling soundtrack — are significant, but this is Portman’s film through and through. The actress has never been so unmoored before, even in her impressive*Black Swan*role. Ms. Portman has long been a marvelous actress, but under every performance there was always the indication that it was still Portman up on the screen. Not so with*Jackie.*It’s the type of performance that will not simply be admired, but also dissected and studied for years to come. With this film,*Portman transcends herself, embodying not so much the real Jackie Kennedy but rather the public’s perception of the famous First Lady.
It’s a film that isn’t as interested in the assassination itself except in what it says about Jackie. Portman’s performance is riveting from the moment she utters her first word. The mannerisms and breathy affectations are distracting at first, clearly she’s trying to sound the way Jackie did, but within moments all of that just melts away. And Larrain is smart; he’s not afraid to focus right in on her, to force us to accept her performance completely for what it is. Portman exudes a haunting, unearthly quality that is the stuff Best Actress nominees are made of. She is all but assured of being in the Oscar race again and probably has to be considered the frontrunner. Few will be asked upon to carry the emotional burden she has, as literally every single scene relies on her. If she were to fail, if her risky portrayal of an American icon like Jackie Kennedy were to be lacking in any way, the entire movie would collapse. She doesn’t need to look like Jackie, in fact she only does in the most trivial sense, but none of that matters. The same goes for Peter Sarsgaard, who doesn’t look at all like Bobby Kennedy other than his hairdo, but he still adds breadth and frailty to a man that history often portrays as impeccable. Speaking of impeccable, the flawless recreations of the White House and specific moments in Kennedy history add depth and authenticity. We would expect nothing less from Larrain and he delivers.
Jackie is everything we expected it to be and more. It is both the Oscar bait drama we thought it would be and yet fuller, richer due to Larrain’s direction and Portman’s vivid, unforgettable performance. While most biopics are content to simply go over what we already know, Jackie builds upon what we don’t already, becoming part of her legacy forever.
