JFK Revisited: Through the Looking Glass

Oliver Stone returns to the Kennedy assassination, this time as documentary rather than fiction. The material is declassified documents and James DiEugenio's 1992 book Destiny Betrayed. Stone stated the purpose himself: this is an important bookend to my 1991 film; it ties up many loose threads. It was first conceived as a four-hour series called JFK: Destiny Betrayed; the theatrical version runs 118 minutes. Whoopi Goldberg and Donald Sutherland narrate. The documentary presses on two points: the chain of evidence behind the single-bullet theory said to have struck both Kennedy and Governor John Connally, and witness testimony about Lee Harvey Oswald's movements after the shooting. Those interviewed include the forensic scientist Henry Lee, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the economist James K. Galbraith. It premiered at Cannes in July 2021, went to video-on-demand on 12 November, aired on Showtime on 22 November and opened in UK cinemas on 26 November. The reception was mixed. Rotten Tomatoes sits at 63 percent with a 6.1 average and Metacritic at 55. Who it is for: viewers interested in the case and in Stone's argument. Who it is not for: anyone who wants to hear the other side. The documentary only gives the floor to people who support its thesis and makes no room for the objections.