When Fox Searchlight Pictures’ “Jackie” premiered at the Venice Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival in September, the conversation immediately turned to Natalie Portman’s performance as the iconic first lady. The film, directed by Pablo Larraín with a screenplay by Noah Oppenheim, provides a brilliant vehicle for the actor’s many talents. In addition, the rest of the ensemble is stacked with actors who not only bolster Portman’s spectacular performance, but work together as an ensemble to create a rich new look at a pivotal moment in U.S. history.
“Jackie” focuses on an interview Jacqueline Kennedy gave to a journalist (played by Billy Crudup) only a week after the Nov. 22, 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy (Caspar Phillipson). In the moments after the horrific event, people close to Jackie begin to blur the line between the personal and professional.
Robert F. Kennedy (Peter Sarsgaard) is not just the Attorney General, but also her brother-in-law, a man who must deal with this monumental and close death while also completing his highly important job in the wake of tragedy. Greta Gerwig plays White House social secretary and Jackie’s childhood friend Nancy Tuckerman, who provides Jackie sisterly affection in her darkest hour. Richard E. Grant breathes life into William Walton, the close friend of the Kennedy family, as well as a painter and journalist who chaired the U.S. Commission of Fine Art. John Carroll Lynch portrays the formidable Lyndon B. Johnson, her husband’s presidential successor, while Beth Grant plays Ladybird Johnson, the woman who would become the nation’s new first lady. Jackie also experiences a moment of gut-wrenching vulnerability during a visit from a priest (John Hurt).
Now playing in select theaters, “Jackie” has already emerged as an awards season contender. The film may be Portman’s tour de force, but the ensemble working with her give affecting and memorable performances while bringing this tragic time in American history to the big screen. For more information, visit the official Fox Searchlight website.
This content has been sponsored by Fox Searchlight Pictures.