Bobby

Todd Says:

4 STARS

Bobby is an interesting view of an important day in History. Even if the characters were only created to imitate people from that time and not to portray actual people from history. I think that the movie does two important things.

First, it gives our history-starved society a nice little lesson about the past. Even if these particular characters did not really exist, it's nice to examine how different kinds of people lived and thought at that particular time in American history. The struggle for civil rights was extremely significant, at least I think so.

Second, it tells a good story. Or seventeen good stories. Or at least a few good stories, and some O.K. stories, and maybe one or two so-so stories. I guess that there are a lot of story lines to try to follow, the good thing is that the movie is only about one day. Well, I guess it's really about a lot more than that, but it takes place in one day.

The verdict: take the time to watch this one. It's worth it, I'm fairly certain that you'll enjoy it. Unless something is wrong with you.




Alexis Says:

3 STARS

I had been looking forward to viewing Bobby ever since reading about it in Entertainment magazine some months ago. I was intrigued to see Estevez's attempt at writing, starring in and directing a film as well as the idea that the title character would be presented mostly using actual footage of Robert F. Kennedy.

The footage of RFK adds an aura to the film that gave me goosebumps and the amount of famous actors and actresses present in the film is almost unmatched in any movie here of late. However, I felt that there were too many 'main' characters and so it was hard to really feel connected to any character in particular. But the film does represent the time period accurately enough I guess.

After viewing the film I was pleased enough, because I was under the impression that it was mostly based on true events. It really isn't. Estevez won a Biografilm Award at the Venice Film Festival in 2006. Who was this a biography of? It really wasn't a biography of Bobby and none of the other characters in the film are even based on real people staying at the Ambassador in June of 1968 with the exception of Freddy Rodriguez's character Jose Rojas who is based on the busboy who held Bobby after he was shot and gave him his rosary. I am sorry but the fact that this movie is a total work of fiction really lowered my excitement about it. I know maybe I should just read a history book if I want to know more about Sen. Kennedy's assassination, but I am really disappointed in the fact that these people whom the movie are about are just Estevez's creations.

However, the acting is good and the film is partially taped at the real Ambassador hotel which I find interesting. The slicing of real media coverage from the actual event into the movie was a nice touch, especially during the chaotic assassination scene.

If you want a historical accurate account of what happened on the night of June 5, 1968, this movie falls a little short. If you want to watch an enjoyable bit of cinema about the era that was the 60s, which is loosely based on the RFK assassination, then this isn't a bad choice.