Parkland

Cast of Characters:

Robert Oswald - James Badge Dale

Dr. Jim Carrico - Zac Efron

Father Oscar Hubert - Jackie Earle Haley

Dr. Malcolm Perry - Colin Hanks

James Gordon Shanklin - David Harbour

Head Nurse Doris Nelson - Marcia Gay Harden

James P. Hosty - Ron Livingston

Lee Harvey Oswald - Jeremy Strong

Secret Service Agent Forrest Sorrels - Billy Bob Thorton

Marguerite Oswald - Jacki Weaver

Secret Service Agent Roy Kellerman - Tom Welling

Abraham Zapruder - Paul Giamatti

Director - Peter Landesman

Screenplay - Peter Landesman

Based on the book Reclaiming History: The Assassination of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy by Vincent Bugliosi

Rated PG-13 for bloody sequences of ER trauma procedures, some violent images and language, and smoking throughout

      Zac Efron, Academy Award nominees Paul Giamatti and Jacki Weaver and Academy Award winners Marcia Gay Harden and Billy Bob Thorton headline an ensemble cast in Parkland.

      Parkland refers to the hospital where both President John F. Kennedy and Lee Harvey Oswald died. Unlike other films that have dealt with the Kennedy assassination directly, this film focuses on the lives of those closely surrounding the assassination.

      The film opens in Dallas, Texas, with clothing store businessman Abraham Zapruder (Paul Giamatti), excited to see the president and his motorcade, filming the events taking place. What follows is the tragic events that changed his life forever. Following the shooting, President Kennedy is rushed to Parkland Hospital where an unprepared medical staff lead by Doctors Jim Carrico (Zac Effron) and Malcolm Perry (Colin Hanks) are faced with the daunting task of saving the president's life. 

      Also affected by this tragedy, possibly more than anyone else aside from the Kennedy family, is Robert Oswald (James Badge Dale), who is shocked beyond belief at the news that it's his brother Lee Harvey Oswald (Jeremy Strong) who has reportedly assassinated the president. "You may wanna consider changing your name and getting the hell out of Texas.", says one authority to Robert (he never did either, by the way).

      Almost fifty years to the day of that fateful morning on November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy's assassination is one of the most tragic events in American history not just for what happened, but for the mystery it still creates surrounding the who, what, where and why revolving around it. Parkland doesn't focus on the mystery of the assassination, but instead focuses on the people that were instantaneously affected by it. While it is a refreshing approach to go that route, the film winds up being just okay to good when, considering the subject matter, you want it to be great. Running close to 90 minutes, the film kinda felt like it came and went. I've criticized plenty of movies for feeling too long and drawn out, but poor pacing can be achieved from the other end of the spectrum as well. It's as if writer/director Peter Landesman was afraid of spending too much time on certain individuals, so he ends up not giving us enough. It's not the fault of the performances. The performances are great and when you see the names involved here, you expect them to be. The problem though is that they're great performances stuck in a so-so story arc. The always dependable Paul Giamatti gives a great performance as Abraham Zapruder. Zapruder, up until his death in 1970, was the man whose life was forever changed by the fact that he caught the assassination on his little home-movie camera. His story angle was the one I was looking forward to the most, but in spite of a great turn from Giamatti that hits all the right emotional notes when needed, we never get too in depth with the man who was forever traumatized by what he captured as much as we should. Where the film does get it just right is when it focuses on the Oswald family. Sure Jacki Weaver's over-the-top performance as Lee Harvey's mother may put off some, but it's a forgivable over-the-top one when you realize that Marguerite Oswald was a bit nutty in real life. James Badge Dale doesn't have resume that Oscar winners Harden and Thorton or Oscar nominees Giamatti and Weaver have, but out of all the performances within this film, his had my attention the most. Dale is perfectly restrained as the man that would for the rest of his life be known as "the guy whose brother murdered the president" and we get a feel for just how ostracized the Oswald family became by the rest of the nation immediately following JFK's death. No scene depicts this better than the Lee Harvey's funeral where no one shows up and Robert has to practically beg the press there watching to help carry the casket to the grave site. It's such a poignant moment within the film 'cause you realize this family had nothing to do with the heinous act Lee Harvey did, yet the whole "guilt by association" aspect persecutes them anyway. No one else shows up to the funeral. They could hardly find any church willing to perform the service and the most heartbreaking moment is when Robert Oswald has shovel dirt onto his own brother's grave by himself until two graveyard worker reluctantly help him. In spite of the evil that Lee Harvey committed, we can't help but feel for his family, particularly the brother (who never once doubted his brother's involvement in the assassination). You can see he's not just grieving the loss of his brother, but also grieving over why he would commit such a despicable act that would ultimately lead to his demise. If the film put as much focus on the other story elements as they do here, there's no doubt that this would've been a much better film. 

      The story is intriguing, but we still don't get enough insight overall into how affected these ordinary people turned extraordinary through one of America's tragedies are as we should. While the film is flawed, there's still enough to like here that merits a watch, whether you're a fan of movies or history. It's just a shame that the film as a whole couldn't be as well developed as certain elements within the film are. It was practically in and out with a limited theatrical release, but is available through Video On Demand and Netflix. I give Parkland a B- (★★★).