Cannes Film Festival 2021: Oliver Stone’s JFK Revisited – Through the Looking Glass presents new evidence

Oliver Stone’s Cannes Film Festival title, JFK Revisited: Through the Looking Glass, comes decades after the the American president John Fitzgerald Kennedy was shot dead in Dallas, Texas, while he and wife Jacqueline were riding in an open motorcar. The president was a darling of the masses, and despite the grim warning of his security agencies not to travel in an open car, he dared and went ahead only to die in the arms of his wife.

Was it Lee Harvey Oswald who killed Kennedy? Or was it the the night club owner, Jack Ruby, who shot Oswald later? It remains one of the eternal mysteries – perhaps much like our own Subash Chandra Bose’s disappearance during WWII that has spawned so many theories.

Oliver’s latest documentary is extremely well researched and conveys that there is a lot of evidence to believe that the assassination was not the work of a lone gunman. There could have been bigger players and masterminds – as the conspiracy theories point out. Probably, we may never know the whole truth, but Oliver’s attempts to keep the tragedy alive may well keep the prosecution attorneys on their toes. The JFK mystery will continue to haunt us, reminding us that Kennedy’s demise also pushed the US into a direction that many were not happy about.

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Oliver packs lots of information into his work and in just two hours. A longer four-hour version is also available. And the director has many more pieces of puzzling information on offer that the world thinks it knows. But does not.

Speaking at a press conference after JFK was screened, Oliver quipped that the “conspiracy theory has now become conspiracy fact,” even as he compared Kennedy to the presidents who came after him. “None had his strength to carry through any worthy intentions they may have held prior to taking office.”

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Many lived through their presidency in fear. “Barak Obama feared for his life. I think one of his biggest concerns when he was President was being assassinated, because he was the first Black President. Of course I don’t know this, it’s just an assumption, because of his behaviour, which was don’t offend anyone, be moderate…”

“The motive for the Kennedy murder was change, and Kennedy was changing things. If he had succeeded, we would be in a wholly different place now.” Oliver averred.

(Written by Gautaman Bhaskaran)

*** This article has been archived for your research. The original version from Hindustan Times can be found here ***