Les Kennedy

A dialogue-driven, eight part drama miniseries charting the rise and fall of the Kennedy family in American politics. The main draw is JFK and the story of his ascendancy and eventual downfall, but it turns out the real star of the show is his father Joe, a character exposed as an utterly ruthless manipulator as the plot unfolds.

I'll admit that the first couple of episodes left me a little cold, depicting a bunch of characters it's difficult to care about at first. Once I was hooked, though, I was hooked, and Joe's hunger for power is every bit as engaging as that of Caesar or Henry VIII. Tom Wilkinson, still best known for his cuddly roles in the likes of THE FULL MONTY, is unrecognisable and outstanding in the role, a true test of his talent as an actor.

Greg Kinnear and Barry Pepper equally shine as the Kennedy brothers, each actor bringing likability to his part without neglecting the various character defects. Katie Holmes is uncanny as Jackie. The historical backdrop is well realised, with such dramas as the Bag of Pigs fiasco, the Cuban Missile Crisis and the civil rights struggle adding plenty of meat to the storyline, and I was alternatively gripped, disgusted, moved and surprised as the story reached its culmination. THE KENNEDYS is a piece of well-made drama and TV at the top of its game.

I have always been fascinated with the Kennedy family & over the years have read & seen so much about them. This series was wonderful - very entertaining & extremely well written. A lot has been said about the acting & I too was watching with a critical eye. I have to say the acting was excellent! I found myself totally engrossed in watching the story line which of course I know so well. I was captivated by how each & every actor was able to portray such a likeness to their real life character. This was indeed enhanced by the stupendous job by the make-up & costume department! Katie Holmes in particular had an extremely difficult role to play, but what an amazing job she did! I truly enjoyed this fabulous series!

"Your name is Kennedy & Kennedy's never come second." The controversial mini-series passed on by the History Channel that shows the highlights of the life of JFK (Kinnear) and RFK (Pepper). Beginning with the family preparing for election night and following them, with flashbacks, until the assassination of Bobby. Being a huge history buff, and more specifically a Kennedy buff I was very much interested in this. When I saw Greg Kinnear and Barry Pepper playing the roles of Jack and Bobby I was excited to see them in this. I was not disappointed at all. While some of the events were not exactly as they happened (Joe finding out about the assassination for one) this is still a very good account of the life of the men. Being a mini series and so much to cover almost all of the events are glossed over quickly, (the Cuban Missle Crisis is begun and finished in 42 minutes) but the important aspects are in this. The acting is fantastic from everyone, and the casting is perfect, much like Jaoquin Phoenix in "Walk The Line" no make up (besides the hair) was used and you swear that Kinnear is actually JFK. I can see why the History Channel did pass on this series though in the fact that it's not 100% accurate, but this is very much worth watching. This can easily stand up to (and in my opinion surpasses) the "John Adams" series. Overall, a fantastic award worthy series. Both for the series and the acting. Biggest problem with awards will be who to give supporting award to...Pepper or Wilkinson. Watch this! I give it an A.

Would I watch again? - I will buy this.

*Also try - Thirteen Days

I was 6, living in Dallas, when this occurred. I just remember my Mom on the phone saying "oh no, oh no". And she hadn't even voted for Kennedy.

I just know that whenever anybody visited Dallas after that, they ALL wanted to go to the school book depository, as well as the famous grassy knoll. Sometimes, they even wanted to go on to Parkland. Sigh.

One of our neighbors from church was also a Dallas policeman, and he was in charge of 'guarding' Mrs. Kennedy and then V.P. Johnson. He had a lot of quiet stories to tell.

I thought this 'film' handled Oswald well, as the loner that he was. I'm just glad that he was taken out of the picture early on.

Katie Holmes was great as the poor Mrs. Kennedy. Maybe without the 'finishing school' touch, but she was spot-on, as were the other actors, although I didn't think Rose Kennedy was well represented. Nor do I think the actor portraying Lyndon Johnson was a good choice. But maybe that's because I later went to school in Austin.

Again, not a nice memory for this city, for sure. But this 'film' handled Mrs. Kennedy's miscarriage well and showed it as the real turning point in their lives. So many movies have been made about this event. Speaking as a Dallas native, although a very young native, it left its mark on the city.

"The Kennedys" is a competently produced and mostly entertaining series with terrific performances, realistic dialogue, and fine set design that convincingly evokes the time period of John and Robert Kennedy. The story is nothing new to those familiar with the Kennedys: after the death of his eldest son in World War II, New England patriarch Joseph Kennedy pushes his son John to become President of the United States. Along the way, John's fearless brother Robert and his enigmatic wife Jackie give him needed support as he campaigns for higher office and makes decisions that will forever change the course of history.

The TV series isn't entirely historically accurate: it does take liberties with certain details and embellishes relationships and events that in reality were less sensational. But I mostly didn't mind since this is a drama and not a documentary, and the changes made generally served the narrative. The story of the Kennedys has been brought to life in better, richer TV shows and movies such as "Kennedy" starring Martin Sheen and "Thirteen Days" with Bruce Greenwood. If you're interested in the Kennedys I recommend you watch those first, but "The Kennedys" does tell their story very well overall even if it doesn't really bring anything new to the table.

The four central characters are all complex and fascinating, and the actors (Greg Kinnear as JFK, Barry Pepper as RFK, Katie Holmes as Jackie, and Tom Wilkinson as Joe Kennedy) do a terrific job bringing these historical figures to life. In particular Barry Pepper is spellbinding as Robert Kennedy: he captures the intensity and the empathy that drove RFK all his life, and he exactly replicates Kennedy's appearance and speaking style without doing an impersonation. If nothing else I recommend watching the series for his performance alone. The costume design, sets, and music all do a terrific job of replicating the 1960s, and at no point in the series does anything feel out of place, fake, or less than authentic to the times.

The biggest complaint I have is that the series takes a downhill turn after JFK's assassination: the final episode, which focuses on the Kennedys after his death, is unfocused, sloppy, and skips over four years of riveting history from 1964 to 1968. Jackie is sidelined as a character and RFK comes across as too self-pitying and opportunistic. Because the series almost entirely ignores his service as a U.S. Senator, we don't witness his tireless work for the underprivileged or his painful indecision over whether or not to run for President in 1968. The finale was a missed opportunity to tell a compelling story, and overall it's a disappointing conclusion to the show.

If the series had ended with JFK's death, I'd rank it an 8/10. It's slick, well-acted, entertaining, and does a fine job of bringing such cherished American icons to life on the silver screen. It also manages to show the Kennedys' flaws while remaining respectful of their accomplishments and principles. But the finale just doesn't cut it, making the series an incomplete experience. 7/10.