11-22-63: The Day the Nation Cried

11-22-63: The Day the Nation Cried (1989)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Decent documentary taking a look at the day President Kennedy was assassinated. The documentary also tells the early days of Kennedy as he fought in the war and we also learn how he got into politics, became a popular playboy and how many were against him being elected because they felt his money was buying his way into office. Countless people are interviewed including Paul Fay, Rep. Jim Wright, John Kenneth Galbraith, Norman Cousins, Carol Channing, Peter, Paul and Mary, Rep. John Lewis, Lawrence O'Brien, Coretta Scott King and Tip O'Neal among others. This is a pretty good documentary but the title is a tad bit misleading since there's not too much talk of the actual assassination. I think history buffs will enjoy this as there's quite a bit of news footage from the day that the event happened. There are several media reports talking about the assassination and I guess we're all thankful that this footage is still out there (so much footage over the years has been lost). The interviews are also pretty good as each person shares their thoughts on Kennedy and the events at that day. James Earl Jones does the narration so you know that aspect is going to be just fine. I think the documentary should keep history buffs entertained but at the same time there have been so many other documents on the event that this one here doesn't seem as special or as good. Many current documentaries have gone into greater detail about the events of that day so they're much more worth checking out. Once you've seen those then this here could be viewed.