‘Parkland’ recounts JFK’s assignation in Dallas

Fifty years after the traumatic event, the movie takes audiences into a whole new territory and recounts the chaotic events that occurred in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963, the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. During the running time of 93 minutes, we discover many of the key players; from a surgical resident Dr. Jim Carrico (played by Zac Efron) to head nurse Doris Nelson (Marcia Gay Harden) who tried to resuscitate the former president at Parkland Hospital before he was pronounced dead at 1pm. We get a glimpse of the before and after events including the disagreements between the Secret Service agents who wanted to take JFK’s body back to Washington immediately after his death and the Texas medical examiner who tried to stop them.

Mark Duplass as Kenneth O_Donnell, Tom Welling as Roy Kellerman and Kat Steffens  as Jacqueline Kennedy  in Parkland  Photo by Claire Folger

Mark Duplass as Kenneth O_Donnell, Tom Welling as Roy Kellerman and Kat Steffens  as Jacqueline Kennedy  in Parkland  Photo by Claire Folger

We also learn more about Lee Harvey Oswald (played by Jeremy Strong), the solo shooter and the impact his action had on his brother Robert (James Badge Dale) and his narcissistic and delusional  mother Marguerite Oswald (Jacki Weaver)  who claimed her son was Lee was an agent of the US government and was framed for killing the president.  Weaver felt her son deserved to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery with the president he killed.  We also learn a little known fact about the assassination and that the FBI Agent James Hosty, who lived in Dallas, had been in contact with Oswald just days before the shooting.

Marcia Gay Harden as Nurse Doris Nelson, Colin Hanks as Dr. Malcolm Perry and Tom Welling as Roy Kellerman Photo by Claire Folger

Marcia Gay Harden as Nurse Doris Nelson, Colin Hanks as Dr. Malcolm Perry and Tom Welling as Roy Kellerman Photo by Claire Folger

An enlightening film which takes place over four days, Paul Giamatti plays Abraham Zapruder the Dallas businessman, who accidently shot what may be the most famous 26 seconds of film in history. Zapruder shot the notorious 8mm film that recorded the shooting and has never publicly shared his story before. He never used the camera again after that day. From Dallas to D.C., Parkland to the Whitehouse, the film recreates the boiling tension of that moment and introduces the key individuals who played a part in history. With plenty of compelling and revealing scenes “Parkland” is a powerful true story never told of the people behind the scenes of a historical occurrence.

Paul Giamatti plays Abraham Zapruder who shot JFK's assasination

Paul Giamatti plays Abraham Zapruder who shot JFK’s assasination

The writing/directing debut of journalist Peter Landesman, the movie is produced by Playtone Partners’ Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman, Bill Paxton and based on the book “Four Days In November” by Vincent Bugliosi.

Samantha Ofole-Prince is a journalist and movie critic who covers industry-specific news that includes television and film. She serves as the Entertainment Editor for Trendy Africa. Photos by Claire Folger

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