Bobby (DVD)

...seat. On June the 4th Bobby wins the Californian vote by a huge majority and as a result hosts a conference for his supporters at the Ambassador Hotel. That is where he is assassinated. Bobby tells the story of 22 separate characters staying at the hotel, how the country's political climate effects them and how the assassination of Robert Kennedy affects and changes their lives.

Bobby shouldn't work, and very nearly doesn't; it's ...
.../> The main problem with Bobby is that lacks any kind of subtlety; the audience is told how to feel and many plot developments are sign posted in the first ten minutes, and as a result Estevez's direction feels a little ham fisted. He instils no ambiguity to the characters or the films premise and there is little room for interpretation; Robert Kennedy would have made America the perfect place and would have solved all world problems and that's ... more

The year is 1968 and America is in political and social turmoil; Martin Luther King's assassination in April has sent the civil rights movement reeling and the effects of John F Kennedy's shooting five years earlier can still be seen. His younger brother Robert, an anti racist campaigner and electoral candidate, is emerging as one of the most prominent and liked politicians of the time. His views (mainly his anti Vietnam agenda) seemed to have sparked people's attentions and he is all but guaranteed the presidential seat. On June the 4th Bobby wins the Californian vote by a huge majority and as a result hosts a conference for his supporters at the Ambassador Hotel. That is where he is assassinated. Bobby tells the story of 22 separate characters staying at the hotel, how the country's political climate effects them and how the assassination of Robert Kennedy affects and changes their lives.

Bobby shouldn't work, and very nearly doesn't; it's too scattered, lacks a good structure, the writing falls into the preachy and the actors star power far outweighs what their given to work with. And yet, against alot of odds and despite a rush of flaws, it succeeds rather spectacularly in being one of the most devastating and moving pieces of cinema to come along in a while. It's a patchwork of loss, love and shattered dreams that ties a dozen or so intimate stories into one large whole and shows how an overwhelming historical event affects different people's lives. With its snap shots of true drama it becomes truly affecting and the scripts ability to make you care about so many characters is extraordinary; it takes their emotions and shines a light on them, pulling the poignancy of their stories out with full force and clashing them to make a firework of tragedy and redemption. Although blind sighted by admiration for Robert Kennedy (which makes some of the film a little, well alot, one dimensional), it excellently throws up hundreds of what ifs and uses his truly inspirational speeches to body blow you into feeling America's loss when he was assassinated. Bobby's not always as good as it could be, but it beats the hell out of most movies of late.

The thing which is Bobby's saving grace is the screenplays wonderful characterizations; we are engaged in the characters, despite their short screen times, and they are all cleverly created to show different aspects of everyone's personality which makes them feel like an extension of ourselves, which makes their journeys much more affecting. However, that doesn't mean that all the characters are successful; Helen Hunt's whiny rich wife is nothing but annoying and adds nothing to the proceedings, Heather Graham's adulteress telephone receptionist is nothing but a paper-thin plot devise as is Ashton Kutcher's drug dealing Fisher. Luckily, for every one character that fails there are three that are wholly triumphant, these are the ones that have something genuinely interesting to say, have moving stories and find redemption/happiness/faith or just a resolution to their story arc. The best example of this is Sharon Stone's Miriam; a fading beauty who tries to cover it up by slapping on makeup and ratting her hair up to an impressive Buffon, a loving wife whose husband is cheating and a wholly compassionate friend without any true companions whose life is turned upside down as she is forced to reassess her whole life. She is a naked, raw, interesting character who Estevez's script develops incredibly, giving her incredible poignancy and an amazing emotional crescendo.

Bobby's incredible ensemble cast (it really is like a who's who of Hollywood power players) do their upmost with their short running times. Demi Moore puts in the best performance of her career as a manic, drug addicted, alcoholic starlet whose world is unravelling as her addictions become more and more dominating. Raw, hypnotic and very, very sad she really gives it her all and mines her screen-time for all it's worth without feeling over wrought or chewing the scenery up.... her chemistry with Emilio Estevez is palpable and engaging which makes the story's eventual resolution even more heart-breaking. Nick Cannon of MTV fame is surprisingly brilliant as Dwayne, a young black campaigner whose desire for America to change is dashed by the struggles, prejudices and eventual heart-ache of the campaign trail. He puts in a complex and moving performance which makes his flimsy character much more memorable. Harry Belafonte shows why he is one of the most beloved actors of his generation with a brief but emotional performance as a retiree whose memory (and body) is beginning to fail him and Anthony Hopkins is equally brilliant. Lindsey Lohan shows that she is a subtle and genuinely talented actress as Diane, a young woman who agrees to marry a boy to stop him going to the front lines. But without doubt the movie belongs to Miss Stone, putting in a pitch perfect performance of extraordinary depth, gravitas and power.

The main problem with Bobby is that lacks any kind of subtlety; the audience is told how to feel and many plot developments are sign posted in the first ten minutes, and as a result Estevez's direction feels a little ham fisted. He instils no ambiguity to the characters or the films premise and there is little room for interpretation; Robert Kennedy would have made America the perfect place and would have solved all world problems and that's that. Estevez doesn't give the film a solid structure so the character's stories are not so much weaved together as smashed and he frequently cuts the characters off when they are at their most compelling. Most jarring of all is the wildly uneven manner in which he direct, he swings haphazardly from silly to serious without second thought for pacing or continuity. However that's not always true; there is a scene between William H Macy and Sharon Stone which is incredibly directed with intensity and maturity and the way in which he deals with Demi Moore's drunken starlet is truly excellent. And maybe that's the most infuriating thing of all; Estevez shows glimpses of being an exceptional director but he never quite pulls it all together, he never quite makes the leap from good to great and as a result the film does suffer.

Bobby is surprisingly technically accomplished; the final few sequences are stunningly orchestrated (fusing together old footage from the election campaign and Estevez's characters and sets) and it's all rather well played out. It looks excellent, the Hotel is brilliantly recreated (on the DVD there is a fascinating featurette about the Ambassador) and the style and 'feel' of the movie seem very accurate for the time in which it is set. I liked the fact that the camera is quite free moving which gives a sense of pace which the script so sadly lacks and a scene involving an LSD trip is frivolous (and a little bizarre) but brilliantly pictured and deploys some excellent and quite startling GGI effects.

The production finally becomes all that it can be in the final sequence; the aftermath of Kennedy's assassination, played under a deeply moving a stirring speech made by him. It truly is a body blow and gives all the actors the scope and material needed to truly tug at your heart strings. Kennedy's slow meditative tone whilst talking about peace and equality gives the finale a huge amount of resonance and makes Estevez's naive and non cynical attitude seem truly endearing. It is deeply sad and raises hundreds of questions; Bobby was undoubtedly going to win the presidential seat, but could he have changed anything? How different would our world be now if he had won? The films polemic is one that is just as prevalent today and one could argue that that is the films agenda; maybe we need another Bobby, someone who is prepared and able to stand up for what they believe in regardless of the eventual consequences. It truly is a fitting tribute, which makes the quality of the film suffer, but ultimately allows you to appreciate the sincerity, good intentions and heart-on-his-sleave sensibility that Estevez brings to the plate..

Your enjoyment of Bobby will rest almost entirely on your ability to accept it's rather one dimensional view of world politics, if you can then you'll probably be impressed. Despite pacing problems and a few missteps by the director it is a moving, sumptuously acted and at times incredibly written piece of drama, with something that should appeal to everyone and one of the saddest final sequences in recent cinema. Highly recommended. 

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