Seberg

Seberg: A film based on actual events in the life of Jean Seberg, star of Breathless and other French New Wave classics. Covering the period 1968 to 1971 it illustrates how the FBI destroyed her life through gaslighting tactics, false information and releasing tapes obtained through bugging. Seberg (Kristen Stewart) wasn't the only victim in this though, there was an element of revolutionary tourism involved in her support of the Black Panthers and the more reformist movement led by Hakim Jamal (Anthony Mackie). Jamal's marriage and educational trust were destroyed when details of his affair with Seberg were leaked by the FBI. What should have been a taut thriller turns out to be a disappointment due to the rather flat direction by Benedict Andrews, he doesn't deliver on the sharp script provided by Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse. The acting generally isn't bad but given the subject matter I would have expected more passion, especially from Stewart. 6/10.

A young woman, a superstar in the making, returns to her homeland where foundations are all shaking, where prejudice and hate, are causing some to jar and grate, where her views are not compliant, but she's resolute, defiant. So the government machine, sets up its wires to intervene, to listen in on what she's doing, to record all those she's wooing, to disrupt, antagonise, peddling nonsense and plain lies, a conspiracy of hate, of shadow puppets who collate.

Another incredible Kristen Stewart performance, leaves you under no illusion of the government machine that sought to destroy Jean Seberg because of her affiliations and relationships with the movements and people that were no longer prepared to live in a world of racism and discrimination.

There are moments in time when we need to be reminded of the wrongs we've inflicted on others. Seberg succeeds in bringing a message to even the most casual of viewers of what we've allowed to happen in our nation. I found the film to be well written and Kristen Stewart's portrayal of Seberg left me saddened and angry, which to me speaks to a film's success when dealing with news worthy topic. I wish the rest of the cast would have come close to Stewart's performance because it wouldn't have taken much to elevate this movie even more.

Those portraying government representatives slipped into easy stereotypes blended was stilted performances. The passion of the real life individuals whose public persona impacted Seberg's life was barely captured by the actors in the film.

But I'm sitting here wondering all the what ifs so for this afternoon this film has me recommending it to friends. Seven Stars

I don't need to review the whole story of Jean Seberg, or this film, which is well done.. Other reviews and sources do that. This film touches on several aspects of her career, just enough to give us a sense of who she was and how her support of the Black movement in the US was her undoing. And how the FBI was unjust in using her to discredit that black movement.. All that aside, Kristen Stewart is the real deal. This is an actress that I believe will win an Oscar if the right parts come her way.

It is sometimes hard to pinpoint where exactly films fail, the cinematography wasn't bad and you can definitely see that Kristen Stewart tried, but everything else about this film was below mediocre. Characters were one dimensional and lacked any depth, plot development, from the very moment the two main characters meet and then meet again, was abrupt and unbelievable. The other main characters - the good FBI agent vs. the bad one, were just as shallow. Not to mention the wives, whose role never went anywhere and might have as well not been in this film at all.

In the end, it simply wasn't interesting to watch and that is something no amount of blank long gazes and gratuitous nudity can fix.

If you haven't yet, do yourself a favor and watch 'The Lives of Others', a 2006 German film that shares a similar theme but actually does it justice.