Sunday, May 6, 2018

Movie Review: Chappaquiddick

Chappaquiddick was about the death of Mary Jo Kopechne.  In the summer of '69, Teddy Kennedy and his staff held a party in Chappaquiddick, Massachusetts.  He left the party with Mary Jo and drove them both over a bridge.  According to this script, Teddy Kennedy did nothing to save her life and everything to cover his ass.  The film highlighted the event and the week that followed.  Teddy pled guilty to reckless driving and the sentence was suspended (or nothing happened to him).  He lived out the rest of his long life as a senator from Massachusetts.

My Review:
The film left out the ugly rumors about the supposed affair Mary Jo and Teddy were having as well as the baby she might have been carrying.  However, the director didn't leave out how the Kennedy family very early on got control of Mary Jo's body.  The truth of her actual cause of death and potential pregnancy was missed.  The doctor who briefly examined the body stated that she probably lived another twenty-five minutes after the crash and could have been saved.  
Teddy Kennedy's father (Joe) hired a team of lawyers and a doctor to cover many things up.  For example, his driver's license was suspended and then with one phone call it wasn't.  Another interesting example was the "concussion" he suffered which was why he didn't contact the police for 10-12 hours after the accident.  And then there was an implied pay-off of the Kopechne family.  Teddy might have told a friend and his cousin the real story, but his story changed several times throughout the week, and his cousin never spoke to him again.  
Overall, the film was well done-extremely well-acted and loved the timeline put in place.  I was surprised about the unsympathetic tone the film took on about the great Teddy Kennedy.  I inaccurately assumed Hollywood protected their Democrats, but that was my error over stereotype, not the movie's.  On a side note, I wondered if Teddy Kennedy's sequel would ever come out-the time when he covered his nephew's ass for a rape charge after an evening of drinking.  This was an excellent movie for history buffs and those who remembered the event.  5/5 Stars


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