Customer Reviews

Bobby (Full Screen Edition)

5 star:		(49)
4 star:		(37)
3 star:		(15)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Robert F. Kennedy was adored by the masses when he won the primary for the Democratic party, on his way to becoming the president. Then, like his presidential brother, he was gunned down in public. (That was WAY before I was born, so much of what I know comes from books)

Emilio Estevez doesn't exactly focus on that in "Bobby." Instead, he creates an elaborate "Grand Hotel"-style plot, focusing on the people who surrounded Kennedy on the last day of his life. The movie is a little scattered throughout the first parts, but Estevez yanks it together in time for the inevitable, tragic denouement.

The entire movie takes place on one day: June 4, 1968. The place: Los Angeles' Ambassador Hotel. And there's as much drama out of the campaign as in it: For example, the manager (William H. Macy) is cheating on his smart beautician wife (Sharon Stone) with the switchboard girl (Heather Graham), but takes some time out to fire a racist supervisor (Christian Slater) because the guy won't let the black and Latin employees vote.

The doorman (Anthony Hopkins) and his pal (Harry Belafonte) play chess and talk. A lounge singer (Demi Moore) is struggling with alcoholism, a young girl (Lindsay Lohan) is marrying a guy she doesn't love (Elijah Wood) to keep him from going to Vietnam, and campaign workers drop acid. Their stories are only loosely intwertwined -- until Sirhan Sirhan arrives.

Estevez has created a movie that Tries To Have It All. It tackles racism, war, love, voting, women's rights, and the adored icons of an era. It also stars just about every kind of actor: veterans, Bratpackers, ex-sexpots, MTV stars, party girls and accomplished young actors.

In fact, "Bobby" spills over with plot and characters, and for the first two thirds, it seems that there is almost too much of EVERYTHING. But Estevez captures the you-are-there ambience, with crisp suits and longer dresses, neat hair, period music and the occasional baseball reference. For a day, you ARE in Los Angeles in 1968.

And he has a knack for creating a sense of foreboding and sadness, which hangs independently of the characters. Yet in some scenes where Kennedy is supposed to be speaking, the shining eagerness that you see in the audience's faces is enough to bowl you over. It captures the hope that was present during that era, and afterwards died quickly, as hope usually does.

The enormous cast makes it hard to single out one, but there are several good ones: Laurence Fishborne and Freddy Rodriguez as cooks who discuss the racism they struggle with, Macy as the manager who struggles to regain his lost youth by an affair, Stone as his faded beauty of a wife, and Wood's bittersweet, ironic portrayal of the young groom.

Kennedy himself is a nebulous figure -- most of what we see are archival clips, which show the young candidate's charisma and power. Although "Bobby's" take on him is rather naive, it does leave you wondering how he might have changed the US, had he lived.

"Bobby" is high on ambition, and Estevez manages to create a truly poignant, thought-provoking film. It has its flaws, but it also captures a shocking moment in American history.

The year of 1968 will forever be remembered in American history as one of the darkest on record. Martin Luther King, Jr. was shot, the Vietnam War was escalating, drug abuse was on a rampage, and, as told in this excellent film by Emilio Estevez, Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated.

The film centers on one day; June 4, 1968, the day of the California Presidential Primary. The site of the film is the Ambassador Hotel. Bobby Kennedy, who said he would drop out of the race if he lost the primary, was scheduled to appear at the hotel later that evening. During the course of the day, several events involving several different people unfold as the anticipated time of Kennedy's arrival draws near.

Paul (William H. Macy), the hotel manager is married to Miriam (Sharon Stone), the hotel hairstylist, but he's having an affair with Angela (Heather Graham), a hotel switchboard operator. Paul also fires Timmons (Christian Slater), the kitchen manager, because of his refusal to give his Hispanic and Black employees time off to vote. Jose, a bus boy, has found out that he has to work a double shift in the kitchen, so he'll be unable to attend the Dodgers game which he bought tickets for. Since he can't attend, he gives the tickets to head chef Edward Robinson (Laurence Fishburne).

David (Elijah Wood) and Diane (Lindsay Lohan) are scheduled to be married at the hotel. Diane has agreed to marry William so he won't have to go to Vietnam. She will get $135 per month until William is safely serving in Germany. After that, the marriage can be annulled. But, as the movie goes on, Diane genuinely falls in love with William. John Casey (Anthony Hopkins) and Nelson (Harry Belafonte) are two older gentlemen who enjoy spending their days playng chess at the hotel. John, a former hotel doorman, has claimed to have seen many prominent people at the hotel, including JFK, Truman, and FDR. Virginia Fallon (Demi Moore) and her husband Tim Fallon (Emilio Estevez) are staying at the hotel. Virginia is a lounge singer who is battling alcoholism. June 4 is to be her last night of performing at the Ambassador, and she's supposed to introduce Robert F. Kennedy. Dwayne (Nick Cannon) is an assistant working on the Kennedy campaign.

As the day unfolds, these lives will forever be changed as Robert Kennedy makes his appearance at the hotel. Another uninvited guest arrived at the hotel immediately before Kennedy. His name: Sirhan Sirhan (David Kobyantsev) That evening, as the guests are gathered in the main hotel ballroom, Kennedy is whisked away through the kitchen after giving his California victory speech, but, hiding among the well-wishers is Sirhan, who fired several shots at Kennedy. Several in the crowd were struck, including William and Timmons, but Kennedy was mortally wounded. He died at Good Samaritan hospital on June 6, 1968.

Director Emilio Estevez has done a magnificent job in describing the events which took place at the Ambassador hotel. The all-star cast of actors assembled by Estevez did excellent jobs in their roles, and the viewer can almost feel the tension build as Sirhan Sirhan walked through the front door.

I give this movie my highest recommendation. I'm a big fan of historical movies, and this movie is one of the best I've seen in quite a while. This movie captures the essence of the year 1968; the day of June 4th began with tremendous hope for the country, yet it ended in tragedy, and unfortunately, a brilliant young man had to pay the ultimate price.

Robert F. Kennedy was adored by the masses when he won the primary for the Democratic party, on his way to becoming the president. Then, like his presidential brother, he was gunned down in public. (That was WAY before I was born, so much of what I know comes from books)

Emilio Estevez doesn't exactly focus on that in "Bobby." Instead, he creates an elaborate "Grand Hotel"-style plot, focusing on the people who surrounded Kennedy on the last day of his life. The movie is a little scattered throughout the first parts, but Estevez yanks it together in time for the inevitable, tragic denouement.

The entire movie takes place on one day: June 4, 1968. The place: Los Angeles' Ambassador Hotel. And there's as much drama out of the campaign as in it: For example, the manager (William H. Macy) is cheating on his smart beautician wife (Sharon Stone) with the switchboard girl (Heather Graham), but takes some time out to fire a racist supervisor (Christian Slater) because the guy won't let the black and Latin employees vote.

The doorman (Anthony Hopkins) and his pal (Harry Belafonte) play chess and talk. A lounge singer (Demi Moore) is struggling with alcoholism, a young girl (Lindsay Lohan) is marrying a guy she doesn't love (Elijah Wood) to keep him from going to Vietnam, and campaign workers drop acid. Their stories are only loosely intwertwined -- until Sirhan Sirhan arrives.

Estevez has created a movie that Tries To Have It All. It tackles racism, war, love, voting, women's rights, and the adored icons of an era. It also stars just about every kind of actor: veterans, Bratpackers, ex-sexpots, MTV stars, party girls and accomplished young actors.

In fact, "Bobby" spills over with plot and characters, and for the first two thirds, it seems that there is almost too much of EVERYTHING. But Estevez captures the you-are-there ambience, with crisp suits and longer dresses, neat hair, period music and the occasional baseball reference. For a day, you ARE in Los Angeles in 1968.

And he has a knack for creating a sense of foreboding and sadness, which hangs independently of the characters. Yet in some scenes where Kennedy is supposed to be speaking, the shining eagerness that you see in the audience's faces is enough to bowl you over. It captures the hope that was present during that era, and afterwards died quickly, as hope usually does.

The enormous cast makes it hard to single out one, but there are several good ones: Laurence Fishborne and Freddy Rodriguez as cooks who discuss the racism they struggle with, Macy as the manager who struggles to regain his lost youth by an affair, Stone as his faded beauty of a wife, and Wood's bittersweet, ironic portrayal of the young groom.

Kennedy himself is a nebulous figure -- most of what we see are archival clips, which show the young candidate's charisma and power. Although "Bobby's" take on him is rather naive, it does leave you wondering how he might have changed the US, had he lived.

"Bobby" is high on ambition, and Estevez manages to create a truly poignant, thought-provoking film. It has its flaws, but it also captures a shocking moment in American history.

Ostensibly, "Bobby" is supposed to be about the assassination of Senator Robert Kennedy at the Ambassador Hotel in 1968. In telling that story, "Bobby" also tells the "stories" of 22 people who are all at the hotel for different purposes. "Bobby's" Robert Kennedy is portrayed by archived television footage and by a "body double" for some of the action at the Ambassador Hotel. The other 22 people are played by an ensemble cast including Emilio Estevez, who also directed the movie.

To call the other 22 people "characters" would be misleading. For one, they are fictional. In addition, they are not developed as characters but serve more as archetypes - for example, Christian Slater plays the racist archetype, Elijah Wood plays the young man conscripted to go to Vietnam archetype, Ashton Kutcher (of Dude, Where's My Car? fame) plays the the counter-cultural druggie type, Nick Cannon plays the simmering black rage archetype, etc. etc.

The problem with the movie becomes twofold - with such a large and unwieldy cast of archetypes, "Bobby" pushes Bobby Kennedy to the function of "backdrop" instead of the other way around. The second is, the viewer cannot engage and cannot care for an archetype.

This problems builds up to the climax of the movie when Bobby Kennedy is shot in the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel. Throughout the buildup to the climax, the film cuts at various points from Bobby Kennedy archive footage, to its archetypes, to its Bobby Kennedy body double. When Bobby Kennedy is ultimately shot, Estevez goes overboard with quick cuts between archive footage and body double.

Here, "Bobby" commits an unpardonable sin. On June 5, 1968 when Senator Robert Kennedy was shot in the kitchen at the Ambassador Hotel, 5 other people were wounded - William Weisel of ABC News; Paul Schrade of the United Auto Workers; Democratic Party activist Elizabeth Evans; Continental News Service reporter Ira Goldstein; and Kennedy campaign volunteer Irwin Stroll. In "Bobby" 5 of the fictional archetypes are killed/wounded - the two archetypes who shirked their responsibilities to campaign for Robert Kennedy and, instead, dropped acid with the Ashton Kutcher archetype; the racist archetype played by Christian Slater; the unliberated woman archetype played by Helen Hunt; and, most telling, the conscripted young man archetype played by Elijah Wood. While in "real life" all five of the people wounded with Bobby Kennedy survived, in "Bobby," it is implied that the conscripted young man archetype dies and, it is VERY hard to miss the implication that because Sirhan Sirhan shot and killed Robert Kennedy, young men would be killed in Vietnam.

I call the event unpardonable because of the hubris involved in deleting REAL LIFE people in favor of these archetypes. How would you feel if you were William Wiesel watching this movie and instead of seeing yourself (or even some anonymous person) wounded in the kitchen, you see the racist archetype? If the assassination of Bobby Kennedy was such an important event, why trivialize it by replacing the real humans wounded and suffering with fake archetypes? This is "dramatic license" gone haywire.

In making Bobby, it is clear that the intentions of Emilio Estevez were good. His head, on the other hand, was some place else.

This is one of my favorite movies with such a great cast. It goes to show how much Robert F. Kennedy meant to the world. He was such a great man. I highly reccommend this dvd. Not so great special features. But a powerful movie. Stars Laurence Fishburne, Heather Graham, Anthony Hopkins, Helen Hunt, Lindsay Lohan, William H. Macy, Demi Moore, Sharon Stone, Elijah Wood, Ashton Kutcher, Nick Cannon, Shia Lebeouf, Mary Elizabeth Winstead and many other stars. A+++

BOBBY is a masterpiece from writer/director/actor Emilio Estevez that gives us the America of 1968. Specifically, it focuses on 24 very different characters staying at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles on June 4, 1968, the day Robert Kenedy was shot after winning the California primary. In a wise decision by Estevez, Kennedy plays himself in film clips as he talks about a government out of touch with its people. A war in Vietnam is making too much money to be stopped, while segregation, women's rights, and poverty exist all across America. For Estevez, Kennedy was clearly our hope for the future, and his murder robbed America of someone who could have been a brilliant President.

The actors, billed alphabetically, are a who's who of young and old, former Brat Packers and MTV stars, veterans and party girls. At the top is William H. Macy as Paul, the owner of the Ambassador Hotel. Sharon Stone (stunning) is Miriam, his aging beautician wife; and Heather Graham is Angela, his switchboard operator lover. Anthony Hopkins is John Casey, the retired hotel doorman who plays chess with his friend Nelson (Harry Belafonte) and recalls famous people who have stayed at the hotel. Laurence Fishburne is Edward Robinson, head chef and baseball lover on a crucial baseball day for Don Drysdale. Christian Slater is Timmons, a racist kitchen manager fired by Paul for not giving black and Hispanic kitchen staff time off to vote. Martin Sheen (Estevez' real-life Dad) and Helen Hunt are Jack and Samantha, celebrating their tenth anniversary at the hotel. Lindsay Lohan as Diane is marrying boyfriend Elisha Wood (as William, not David) without much love to save him from going to Vietnam. Ashton Kutcher is a drug dealer turning two Kennedy campaigners on to LSD. Pretty Mary Elizabeth Winstead steals two scenes as a coffee shop waitress named Susan. Estevez is Tim Fallon, husband to alcoholic lounge singer Demi Moore as Virginia. (The smoking actress unfortunately does a heavy-handed Marlboro red product placement in a beauty shop scene.) And DAWSON'S CREEK's Joshua Jackson is Wade, a Kennedy campaign manager. And so it all goes, with everyone mingling inside the Ambassador very much like Robert Altman's cast in NASHVILLE (1975). And, going further back, the Oscar-winning Best Picture, GRAND HOTEL (1932), which John Casey fondly recalls.

Estevez is an amazingly accomplished filmmaker for someone so young. How old was he in 1968? Yet he captures the political and social landscape in America to perfection in his screenplay and gets stunning performances from such an eclectic cast of pros. He has also worked to perfection with his crew, including composer Mark Isham and whoever arranged the period songs, production designer Patti Podesta, costumer Julie Weiss, cinematographer Michael Barrett, and editor Richard Chew. As stated before, Robert Kennedy plays himself in news clips, which was the only sensible thing to do here; Mike Wallace and Walter Cronkite have cameos as themselves.

Bonus features are generous. The 30 minute "BOBBY: The Making of an American Epic" goes behind the scenes with this impressive cast and talks about re-creating the June 1968 era. There is also a 30 minute panel discussion with eyewitness accounts from five journalists and other people who survived that night at the Ambassador and chat candidly about it. And there is a theatrical trailer. BOBBY is presented on DVD in a 2.35 "scope" screen ratio, so I recommend you buy or rent the widescreen edition. But please do see this very underrated and very powerful movie. It did not deserve to die in two weeks in a theater with minimal publicity, and it does not deserve to go unseen on home video. It is a movie you will remember. DAWSON'S CREEK's Joshua Jackson is Wade, a Kennedy campaign manager.

This movie was much different and even better than I expected. It really wasn't so much about Bobby Kennedy the man but more about what he represented to America in 1968. The film follows various people throughout their day at the Ambassador Hotel as they awaited Kennedy's arrival the night of his assassination. The huge ensemble cast includes William H. Macy as Paul the hotel manager, Demi Moore as alcoholic night club singer Virgina Fallon and Martin Sheen as Jack, a rich guy who is in psychotherapy for depression and beginning to question the materialistic and superficial lifestyle of he and his wife. Some other significant story lines involve two young Kennedy aides taking their first LSD trip, a humble and thoughtful young Latino kitchen worker and a couple about to get married so that the guy will be sent to Germany rather than Vietnam.

The movie also skillfully mixes in a substanial amount of archival footage from the Kennedy campaign that shows the enthuiastic, almost euphoric, crowds that flocked to meet him. Portions of several Kennedy speeches are also played back and they demonstrate the optimism and power of Kennedy's message. His words reminded me most of the great poet Walt Whitman in their call for America to realize it's highest potential as a true "land of the free" for all its people. It's the sort of idealism you don't hear too often nowadays and that's a shame.

The characters are brought to life by some tremendous acting and their stories are all quite interesting. But, more than any single individual, this movie is really about capturing what America and its people were like on June the 6th, 1968. The public was divided and in turmoil over the war in Vietnam, race relations were strained to the point of violence and gender roles were changing, as both women and men began to question the status quo. At this time Bobby Kennedy represented a change for the better to millions of Americans, especially racial and ethnic minorites, the poor, women and others who weren't being given an equal opportunity.

I am too realistic about politics to believe that Bobby Kennedy was a saint or that America would be a perfect place if he had been elected president. But there is no doubt that RFK still stands as an important symbol for hope, justice and a brighter future for all Americans.

United States History has always welcomed great leaders. And,out of all of those leaders,one of them happens to be,by far,Robert F. Kennedy. Unfortunately,the assasination of Robert F. Kennedy prevented RFK from being able to fully help,support,and protect America. However,if it was not for Robert F. Kennedy,America would not have been able to get through the problems that the 1960's found them encountering. Therefore,it is great to see homage being paid to Robert F. Kennedy with the film "Bobby".

This film takes place in one entire day:June 4,1968,the day that Robert F. Kenendy was shot (he would not pass until two days after he had been shot). Here,actor/writor/director Emilio Estevez takes both fiction and nonfiction,and blends them all together in this film. There is a lot of footage of Robert F. Kennedy that is presented here. This footage shows Robert F. Kennedy,his opinion on the Vietnam War and Civil Rights,how to resolve the Vietnam War,and how to make Civil Rights successful. At the same time,the dream that Robert F. Kennedy had to reform America from the mess that it had been in from segregation is also presented,alongside footage of the Vietnam War and protests that were going on in America. And then,of course,you have a depiction of Robert F. Kennedy's assasination. Despite the fact that it is no happy way to end this film,it is presented in a clever manner that will keep viewers of this film wondering what will happen next.

The fiction that is here fits in well with this film. It covers the kind of things that were going on in the era for which this film is set. The plot for the fiction in this film is mostly focused around the character of Paul (William H. Macy),the owner of the Ambassador Hotel who learns that he will have to "pay for" a large and previous mistake that he has made,and a previous decision to fire a man who works under him who he believes to be a racist,Darell Timmons(Christian Slater). And then,you have the relationship of William (Elijah Wood)and Diane (Lindsay Lohan),a young couple who,despite the problems they find themselves facing before their wedding (which puts a threat to the occurence of their wedding),end up getting married in order for William to not have to serve in the Vietnam War. I could go on and tell you about all of the other "stories" that are presented in this film,but by know,you get the point.

It is worth noting that there were certain film fans and critics that did complain about a large portion of this film being fictional. But,despite that,keep in mind that a straightforward account of Robert F. Kennedy and his life,the efforts that he made for America following John F. Kennedy's assasination,as well as his campaign for President and his assasination,were all provided in a TV movie that was by the name of "RFK" and aired in 2002. So,even though that had nothing to do with this film,keep this in mind as you watch this film. Emilio Estevez NOT using that same formula in this film saves this film from being what it could have been had Estevez used the formula in "RFK" for "Bobby"--plagarism.

This DVD has a good amount of bonus feautures on it,as well. There is "Bobby:The Making of An American Epic". This gives viewers of "Bobby" a behind-the-scenes look into the making of this film,and interviews that happen to be strong and thorough. At the same time,it gives viewers/fans of this film good insight as to not only how the film was made,but also what lead to this film being made. Another good bonus feauture allows people to hear and learn eyewitness accounts of Robert F. Kennedy's assasination from people who were at the Ambassador Hotel the night that RFK was assasinated,and witnessed the assasination. And,a biography of Robert F. Kennedy that does a good at being interesting and paying good respect to RFK,alongside the theatrical trailer for this film,are also to be found here.

Overall,"Bobby" is a well-written and interesting film. The nonfiction and fiction that are in this film are both presented perfectly,with great acting and a great ensemble cast of actors and actresses (Harry Belafonte,Ashton Kutcher,Sharon Stone,Heather Graham,plus several others)supporting it. If you happen to be a large fan of history,enjoy films that involve fiction,and films that involve nonfiction,"Bobby" is the place to be.

Bobby is a good movie, however realize what the movie is portraying before you watch. I did not know much about the assasination of Robert Kennedy and I was expecting more of a biography on the specific events that led to the assasination. However, the movie is really more about a short glimpse of specific lives that were directly affected by the assasination of Kennedy at the Ambassador hotel.

Do not expect to learn more about the events that took place but rather the individuals who played some sort of role immediately following the assasination. The movie wasn't great, nor was it bad yet I think if I knew a little more about what to expect before I saw the movie I would have enjoyed it more.

The film making and the story line are extremely thought provoking and keep your interest throughout entire film. Although, you may be left somewhat dissapointed by the abrupt end. But what do you expect when you know exactly how this movie will end? Enjoy the film, just realize it is not about Bobby Kennedy, it is about the lives surrounding him on the day of his assasination

"Bobby" means of course Robert F Kennedy, but in "Bobby" Bobby himself appears mostly in archival footage. Emilio Estevez's film is actually about the people (largely fictional, I think) who happened to be at The Ambassador Hotel on the day he was assassinated. The film revolves around the lives of these people (more than 20 in number) loosely interconnected one another and you will see a glimpse of their lives as well as the possible future which might have been, if Robert Kennedy had not been assassinated.

The idea of director Emilio Estevez (who also appears in the film and wrote the script) is ambitious, but has origin in another classic film "Grand Hotel" made in 1932, to which Anthony Hopkins' character refers early in "Bobby." Hotel is the place where people meet and part, and Estevez' choice of the multiple narratives that follow each set of characters one after another is nothing strange. After all, most people were there to meet Bobby.

What disappointed me is not the absence of Bobby - he is there and you can feel his presence through the fervent dialogues from several characters and the speeches of Robert F Kennedy himself in addition to the real news footage - but the lack of originality in some of the characters we meet. It is only natural that if you create more than 20 characters, some of them would be weak and flat, but their background stories are a different thing. While some characters represent the social and cultural changes that were going on in the late 60s - such as Svetlana Metkina's Czech news reporter and Freddy Rodriguez's busboy, both are among the most memorable - others are just too familiar, even clichéd, like a drunken celebrity and a manager having a love affair with a switchboard operator.

I will not write down all the names of the actors who gathered for his film. Some are good (William H. Macy can do no wrong), some OK, others miscast if not terrible. Except several hallucination scenes, Emilio Estevez refrains from showy camera works and even manages to generate suspense in the last 30 minutes. Probably the film's image of Bobby is one-sided, but the film itself is made with sincerity. Still I believe with less characters and more time to have them fleshed out, "Bobby" could have been better.