The Kennedys arrive at Dallas Love Field November 22, 1963
Natalie Portman (right) mirrors Jacqueline Kennedy in the film “Jackie.”
JACKIE
Film Review by Marlene Ardoin
Jackie Kennedy (Natalie Portman) was just 34 years old, when her life was turned upside down forever.
The film, “Jackie,” points out that she was the third youngest first lady at that time. (And, at 42, JFK was the youngest elected President at that time.) Ready or not, Jackie manages to be the wife and mother that we all admired.
This film is very timely in an election year. I think it puts things in perspective, too. As full of strife as our current election has been, it pales in comparison to what was going on during the JFK term in office.
John F. Kennedy was in office 2 years 9 months before he was assassinated. Jackie was left to pick up the pieces, with two young children in tow.
Caroline was 6 years old and John was about 2 years 9 months old, born just two weeks after JFK was elected in a close race with Nixon.
I am not quite sure Portman totally captures the light of Jackie’s complex personality. From a Catholic family, her parents divorced when she was 10, then her mother remarries giving her many step-siblings.
Jackie spends her junior year of college in Paris, where she masters French, and on graduation from college, aspiring to be a writer, she takes a job as a photographer at the Washington Times-Herald newspaper.
About a year after college, she also marries JFK. And, duly noted, at the end of Jackie’s life, she does become a publishing editor. Jackie was in no way a dumb brunette.
The whispery voice, which she shared with Marilyn Monroe, was how intelligent women masked their intelligence then, in a male dominated world.
JFK was assassinated on November 22, 1963. Jackie had just experienced a miscarriage in August of the same year. This gives us a little perspective of just how deeply Jackie needed to reach into her own emotional and character reserves to handle such a horrible experience of witnessing and dealing with her own husband’s assassination.
JFK was known for having extramarital affairs with many women, including Marilyn Monroe, who died August 5, 1962. (This was just three months after singing Happy Birthday to JFK on May 19, 1962.) Also, JFK, reportedly had an affair with Jackie’s press secretary, Pamela Turnure.
January 15, 1962, Jackie taped her famous White House tour, with the help of her press secretary, Pamela Turnure. Jackie’s intention was to restore the White House with its historical artifacts.
This was the first time the public was invited inside the White House, on TV, which was in black and white then.
Needless to say, Camelot had a few cracks. Portman does manage to portray a young mother, who is aware of being surrounded by secret enemies.
The White House, and her temporary home, on being rushed out of the White House, all look like they were carved out of ice.
Rumors surround JFK’s assassination with references to a CIA plot. Some even go as far as to say that George W.H. Bush, who became head of the CIA, was involved in the plot.
Texas was not a safe place to be for the Kennedys. Bush was reportedly in Dallas that day and Vice President Lyndon Baines Johnson was also a Texan. No sympathy from a place that could only gain by her husband’s death.
Portman does effectively communicate how women immediately lost their status as soon as their husbands are out of the picture. In “Jackie,” the young widow is told to just disappear, for her own safety.
I feel that Portman, as Jackie, does help us to see how Jacqueline Kennedy did change the landscape for educated First Ladies in the United States.
I am guessing the she and her husband were too educated and too idealistic for their enemies and for the people they lead. But being natural encouragers, both JFK and Jackie inspired the world to rise to the challenge.
Jackie’s depression and anger were channeled into bravery. Jackie’s idea for JFK’s funeral procession was steeped in historical significance, and was seen around the world.
For those who witnessed the funeral procession, it did provide closure, not only for Jackie, but for everyone.
The Kennedy’s will be remembered for bringing out the best in Americans and for bringing out the pride in being an American.
President Kennedy arrives Dallas Love Field November 22, 1963
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DbEfgcriXvo
John F. Kennedy Funeral November 25, 1963
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_ZWGRA5I-M
Jacqueline Kennedy: White House Tour – Documentary Film:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbFt4h3Dkkw
Jackie Kennedy’s Biography:
https://www.jfklibrary.org/JFK/Life-of-Jacqueline-B-Kennedy.aspx
John F. Kennedy’s Biography
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_F._Kennedy
12/26/16 # Jackie