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Interview with the Assassin (2002)
Runtime: 85 mins
Synopsis: To many people, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy remains one of the greatest mysteries in American history. Did Lee Harvey Oswald act alone? Was he a scapegoat in a conspiratorial plot? Could a second shooter have been responsible for JFK's death? Neil Burger's... To many people, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy remains one of the greatest mysteries in American history. Did Lee Harvey Oswald act alone? Was he a scapegoat in a conspiratorial plot? Could a second shooter have been responsible for JFK's death? Neil Burger's documentary-style directorial debut tackles these oft asked questions through the story of Ron Kobeleski (Dylan Haggerty), an out-of-work cameraman who becomes entangled in conspiracy theories when approached by his older, evasive neighbor, Walter Ohlinger (Raymond J. Barry), who wants to confess to an old crime. Walter claims to have been the second shooter in the JFK assassination, the man whose bullet actually killed the president. Ron pursues Walter's story with gusto, seeking the evidence needed to prove Walter's claim. As the two men travel around the country in search of the proof that Walter insists exists, Ron begins to debate whether or not this increasingly unstable man is telling the truth or is just plain crazy. Barry is believably menacing as the former Marine who may be responsible for one of the most pivotal events in American history. And Haggerty's portrayal of an ordinary man who is thrust into an extraordinary story is both subtle and convincing. [More]
Genre: Dramas
Starring: John F. Kennedy, Raymond J. Barry, Dylan Haggerty, Renee Faia, Kelsey Kemper
Reviews
It could’ve been a great thriller, but not once does Burger create a believable moment.
Barry convinces us he's a dangerous, secretly unhinged guy who could easily have killed a president because it made him feel powerful.
There are no big-name actors and no fancy camera work. But that's what makes it interesting.
Writer-director Burger imaginatively fans the embers of a dormant national grief and curiosity that has calcified into chronic cynicism and fear.
...best seen as speculative history, as much an exploration of the paranoid impulse as a creative sequel to the Warren Report.
Works because we're never sure if Ohlinger's on the level or merely a dying, delusional man trying to get into the history books before he croaks.
Whereas Oliver Stone's conspiracy thriller JFK was long, intricate, star-studded and visually flashy, Interview with the Assassin draws its considerable power from simplicity.
Consistently interesting, often suspenseful, and endearingly silly.
This film offers a compelling scenario of what could have happened.
For most of the distance the picture provides a satisfyingly unsettling ride into the dark places of our national psyche.
The film is worth seeing if only for Barry's excellent performance.
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