J Edgar Hoover ran the FBI as his personal fiefdom with
a rod of iron for almost 50 years. He
used his great position of power as the nations’ lead Investigator to compile
secret files on all the most powerful men (and women) in this country, and it
was these files that were alleged to have enough dirt on all 8 Presidents he served
under to make him, and his Bureau, untouchable.
In this new bio-pic from veteran filmmaker Clint
Eastwood which scans seven decades of the man’s life, we see a chilling
portrayal of a man-possessed, and with an enormous ego who micro-managed every
detail of both the Bureau and his own life.
Hoover was devoted to his domineering mother whom he lived with until her
death, and never made any friends at all, except one. Not surprising too as the man was racist,
bigoted, sexist, homophobic and a total control freak.
There have always been unconfirmed rumors about
Hoover's own sexuality particularly as he had a very close life long friendship
with Clyde Tolson, a handsome younger man, who acted as his PA and his lifetime
‘companion’. With a script written by
Dustin Lance Black (Oscar Winner for 'Milk'), the rumor becomes more of a reality
and the touching interplay between the two men make for some of the best scenes
in the movie.
Like most of Mr. Eastwood’s big blockbuster ‘serious’
movies, J Edgar is good, but not great.
Overly long and lacking in focus in parts when there is excessive and unnecessary
detail that doesn’t add much to the plot.
BUT what does put this movie firmly on this Season’s ‘highly watchable ‘
list is the totally stunning acting. Leonardo DiCaprio as Hoover gives a
breathtaking mesmerizing performance that is brilliant and literally blows you
away. I have never ever seen him this
good before and this will undoubtedly get him his 4th Oscar
nomination, and he may this time even get to take the Statute home. Arnie
Hammer, who last graced our screens playing the Winklevoss Twins in 'The Social
Network', was pitch perfect as Clyde Tolson making the relationship between the
two men that much more believable, and I actually wouldn’t be at all surprised
that he doesn’t get a Supporting Actor Nomination for this. Naomi Watts totally
unrecognizable as the young girl who sensibly turned down Hoover's misguided
proposal of marriage and became his Personal Secretary for almost five
decades, was excellent. And what can one say about the great Dame Judy Dench who played
Edgar's mother? Oh yes, what happened to
your accent Dame Judy?
So was a Hoover really such a bad man? Well, Mr. Eastwood would have us believe that he
was a great success in doing his job solving crimes and keep this country safe, but it came at a heavy price. And choosing
to surround yourself only with young handsome men smartly dressed in good suits,
is not really the right thing to do. Or
is it?
Unmissable for the acting.
★★★★★★★★
★★★★★★★★
