Review: Chappaquiddick

A fascinating look at the incident that scotched any presidential chances Edward "Ted" Kennedy may have had, Chappaquiddick may be one of the best and most incisive portraits of a man by nature flawed and by nurture cowed into cowardice.

Jason Clarke may not wholly look or sound the part, but he perfectly embodies the privileged but self-doubting Kennedy who, at this point in his life, was living in the shadows cast by his brothers. Joe was the favourite, but died a war hero; John charmed the world during his tragically short life; and Bobby, who was to be the second Kennedy to be president, had the political brilliance. For Ted, the last of his eight siblings, carrying on the legacy insisted upon by the family's formidable patriarch, Joe Sr. (Bruce Dern), was his duty whether he wanted to or not. So no one knew better than Ted the consequences of his actions on that fateful night of July 18, 1969 when he drove a car off the bridge in the Massachusetts island of Chappaquiddick and left 28-year-old Mary Jo Kopechne to drown. When asked what happened, Ted replies, "We've got a problem. I'm not going to be President."

That answer tells you everything you need to know about Ted. He's out to protect himself and the Kennedy name. Even though he's intoxicated, even though there's a young woman trapped in her soon-to-be watery grave, even though he had many opportunities to get help as he made his way back to his family cottage, first and foremost on his mind is damage control. Though cousin, family friend and lawyer Joe Gargan (Ed Helms) and Massachusetts Attorney General Paul Markham (Jim Gaffigan) both tell Ted to report the crime, Kennedy would not do so until 10 hours after the fact, 10 hours during which Kopechne could have been saved. In the ensuing aftermath, he continues to act in his own best interests, using all the fixers in his family's pocket to present himself in the most favourable light.

Chappaquiddick is an absorbing observation of the political spin machine and, most remarkably, about a man who does not have the strength or character to be his own man. Ted has so many chances to do the right thing, and he keeps letting those chances slip through his fingers. The filmmakers present Ted with all his foibles well intact, never glamourising or lionising him. The entire film is meticulously calibrated, straightforwardly told, devoid of heavy-handedness, and would remain a fine chronicle even without Clarke's superb portrayal. Yet thank goodness for that performance for it is a master class in eschewing showiness for a more low-key, lived-in approach. His playing is subtle, yet skillful and should rank amongst the best of his career.

Chappaquiddick

Directed by: John Curran

Written by: Taylor Allen, Andrew Logan

Starring: Jason Clarke, Ed Helms, Jim Gaffigan, Kate Mara, Bruce Dern, John Fiore, Gillian Gordon, Olivia Thirlby, Clancy Brown, Taylor Nichols