The Kennedys

A dialogue-driven, eight part drama miniseries charting the rise and fall of the Kennedy family in American politics. The main draw is JFK and the story of his ascendancy and eventual downfall, but it turns out the real star of the show is his father Joe, a character exposed as an utterly ruthless manipulator as the plot unfolds.

I'll admit that the first couple of episodes left me a little cold, depicting a bunch of characters it's difficult to care about at first. Once I was hooked, though, I was hooked, and Joe's hunger for power is every bit as engaging as that of Caesar or Henry VIII. Tom Wilkinson, still best known for his cuddly roles in the likes of THE FULL MONTY, is unrecognisable and outstanding in the role, a true test of his talent as an actor.

Greg Kinnear and Barry Pepper equally shine as the Kennedy brothers, each actor bringing likability to his part without neglecting the various character defects. Katie Holmes is uncanny as Jackie. The historical backdrop is well realised, with such dramas as the Bag of Pigs fiasco, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the civil rights struggle adding plenty of meat to the storyline, and I was alternatively gripped, disgusted, moved and surprised as the story reached its culmination. THE KENNEDYS is a piece of well-made drama and TV at the top of its game.

This 8 episode mini-series that follows the much examined story of President Kennedy. There isn't much here that would surprise anybody. It's a well-mined section of history, and this series just follow the traditional road.

Although there are some in this that's not in the official records, it is already much discussed. And the situations aren't done in a salacious way.

What I like most about this series is the acting. Greg Kinnear and Barry Pepper are solid as the Kennedy brothers. Tom Wilkinson has the power of experience. But I was surprised most by Katie Holmes. She was just so well casted as Jackie.

The controversial 2011 miniseries "The Kennedys" was turned down by History Channel because it wasn't 100% accurate, as if anything that purports to tell a true story on film is 100% accurate. The truth is that the channel was pressured by its board members, many of whom were friends of the Kennedys, to turn it down. The History Channel in England managed to stoop to broadcast it, so something tells me, as my grandmother used to say, there was "dirty work at the crossroads." Speaking of which, this miniseries attempts to give us a realistic look at the Kennedy family, and it isn't too pretty. If this were about my family I'd try to keep someone from broadcasting it as well. And they didn't even give us the worst parts.

The beginning story centers around Joe Kennedy, a man who built his fortune with insider trading and had political aspirations which were dashed when he was pulled from his Ambassador job in England. He then focused on making his son, Joe Jr., the star politician, but when Joe was killed in the service, his hopes turned to Jack. According to this, he didn't think too much of Bobby. Yet in the series, Bobby actually emerges as a hero.

The focus is on these Kennedy men without much about the rest of the family, which was a criticism. But in order to do that, the miniseries would have had to be a maxiseries. It does touch on Rosemary, the mentally/emotionally challenged child who was institutionalized, and whom Joe arranged to have a lobotomy. The miniseries doesn't mention the last part.

There is no mention of Kathleen, nor would there have been, since her family cut her off when she became involved with a married man. When she died in a plane crash at the age of 28, her mother Rose, who did not attend her funeral, said that it was God's punishment for her being involved with a married man. In 1963, President Kennedy saw his sister's grave for the first time.

As far as Jack and Jackie, Jackie emerges as a woman very much in love with her husband, a man who made her unhappy most of the time with his infidelity. This was just something you were supposed to put up with, I guess. I believe there was a lot of love between both of them; and I believe that toward the end of his life, JFK became more and more impressed with her as a woman and realized how important she was to him. It's said that when he died, clippings about her were found in the top drawer of his desk.

Bobby Kennedy comes off as extremely aggressive, loyal, hardworking, a loving husband, and a family man. He was one who, in a way, had greatness thrust upon him and came to a tragic end as a result. Not mentioned is how much Ethel came to resent Jackie because after JFK died, she was calling Bobby for every little thing. One does see her doing this in the miniseries, though.

JFK's portrait is that of a thoughtful man who listened carefully to advice and didn't cave into the military, who wanted him to blow Cuba to kingdom come. The focus here is on the pain he endured from Addison's disease and various infidelities. We do not see a lot of his tremendous charm, his humor, and his great charisma.

The acting is uniformly excellent. I had some problems with Barry Pepper's accent, which I felt in the beginning wasn't organic but really put on. Greg Kinnear was amazing -- as usual, his performances are surprising and he's underrated as a result. If he doesn't sparkle enough as JFK, it's probably because it wasn't in the script.

The most brilliant performance is that of Tom Wilkinson as Joe, a powerful, controlling, ruthless man who let nothing stand in his way to get what he wanted. Wilkinson's real-life wife, Diana Hardcastle, is a marvelous Rose Kennedy.

Katie Holmes does a good job as Jackie, though she resembles Mary Tyler Moore a little more than the First Lady. She is nevertheless lovely and a sympathetic character. We're not really able to see her courage, but we can see what she went through in the White House. We also see that she was an amazing woman, classy and sophisticated, and a wonderful mother without it being beat over our heads. The assassination was well-handled with real documentary footage and no emphasis on gore.

Some of this film is verbatim from real events - Kennedy's speech in Dallas at the Chamber of Commerce, his televised report to America about the Cuban missile crisis, Bobby's speech in Los Angeles, and I wouldn't be surprised if some of the White house meetings were verbatim as well, since those transcripts exist and were used in "Thirteen Days."

All in all, I thought this was very good; I read an expert's list of inaccuracies, and it was fairly short, having to do with whether or not Bobby and Jack discussed their sex lives with one another; whether Joe was pro-Hitler; and whether Joe kissed his secretary in front of Rose. The expert had that incorrect. In the film, Joe is kissing his secretary when Rose enters the room. It wasn't deliberate. Also the expert didn't know if Joe actually did have an affair with his secretary. Not that it would surprise me if he did. I do believe he had a great deal of respect for his wife, however, and would not have done anything to embarrass her.

I highly recommend this series. If the miniseries comes off like a soap opera, let's face it, the lives of the Kennedys were just that. Unfortunately their lives were all too real, and most of them paid a high price for their fame and ambition.

I have always been fascinated with the Kennedy family & over the years have read & seen so much about them. This series was wonderful - very entertaining & extremely well written. A lot has been said about the acting & I too was watching with a critical eye. I have to say the acting was excellent! I found myself totally engrossed in watching the story line which of course I know so well. I was captivated by how each & every actor was able to portray such a likeness to their real life character. This was indeed enhanced by the stupendous job by the make-up & costume department! Katie Holmes in particular had an extremely difficult role to play, but what an amazing job she did! I truly enjoyed this fabulous series!

"Your name is Kennedy & Kennedy's never come second." The controversial mini-series passed on by the History Channel that shows the highlights of the life of JFK (Kinnear) and RFK (Pepper). Beginning with the family preparing for election night and following them, with flashbacks, until the assassination of Bobby. Being a huge history buff, and more specifically a Kennedy buff I was very much interested in this. When I saw Greg Kinnear and Barry Pepper playing the roles of Jack and Bobby I was excited to see them in this. I was not disappointed at all. While some of the events were not exactly as they happened (Joe finding out about the assassination for one) this is still a very good account of the life of the men. Being a mini series and so much to cover almost all of the events are glossed over quickly, (the Cuban Missle Crisis is begun and finished in 42 minutes) but the important aspects are in this. The acting is fantastic from everyone, and the casting is perfect, much like Jaoquin Phoenix in "Walk The Line" no make up (besides the hair) was used and you swear that Kinnear is actually JFK. I can see why the History Channel did pass on this series though in the fact that it's not 100% accurate, but this is very much worth watching. This can easily stand up to (and in my opinion surpasses) the "John Adams" series. Overall, a fantastic award worthy series. Both for the series and the acting. Biggest problem with awards will be who to give supporting award to...Pepper or Wilkinson. Watch this! I give it an A.

Would I watch again? - I will buy this.

*Also try - Thirteen Days