JFK: A Presidency Revealed (2003)
Film:
DVD:

Written & Produced by David C. Taylor
Narrated by Frank Sesno

Features:

• Bonus episodes of Biography: "JFK: A Personal Story" and "Joseph Kennedy, Sr.: Father of an American Dynasty"
  

Released by History Channel
Rating: NR
Region: 1
Anamorphic: N/A; appears in its original 1.33:1 format.

My Advice: JFK followers should own; everyone else should rent

John Fitzgerald Kennedy was an icon of the American presidency. Still is, for the most part. Everybody who was alive at the time can tell you where they were when they learned Kennedy had been killed; the only equivalent for those of us not born at the time would be the Challenger explosion or September 11th. But as much hoopla as his assassination has been given (warranted though it is to some extent), there was a lot more going on with the man than just his end. This special from The History Channel takes a well balanced look at the life of the man and his time in the Oval Office.

I say well balanced, because it's obvious from the beginning this is going to be a pretty fair look at what went on in the White House at the time. When you're referring to the man as a "flawed giant" within the first couple of minutes, this is a precursor of what's to come. Using a slew of new interviews with people close to Kennedy, as well as new documents and audio just recently released, there's a great deal to be learned in this main program. For one thing, as I read in Atlantic Monthly earlier this year, it was well known that Kennedy had health issues--but the extent of those health issues was so severe that if the assassin's bullet hadn't killed him, he might have succumbed to his own problems regardless--and soon. Apart from this, you get all of the landmarks of his presidency covered, including the Bay of Pigs and the building of the Berlin Wall.

The two bonus programs, both from Biography, has a different feel from the main feature, but then again, they are Biography episodes. You get some overlap of material, but mostly it's nice that they felt they should have some bonuses, so no points lost there. There's also the episode covering Joseph Kennedy, Sr., and there was a great deal of new information--at least from my perspective. I never knew much about the man who spawned the Kennedy clan as we know it today, so getting a glimpse of his story was time well spent.

For followers of all things JFK, this will be something worth buying, as it's the newest documentary out there and incorporates many of the latest findings and released information. Everyone else wanting some fair information about his presidency should at least rent it.