One of the Best films of All time.

Rating: 10/10 (20 October 2011)

It is Oliver Stone's greatest work. All the pieces are in place, a great director, an all star cast and of course a John Williams' score. I saw this film when I was 13 years old not even close to be aging appropriate and it blew me away. A 3 hour film feels like a 2 hour journey into the descent of America. The cinematography won an Oscar and Oliver won Best Director at the Golden Globes.
The movie has been bashed for taking a number of things from creative licensing of characters, to wild theories and being propaganda against the government. While its up to you to decide that or not, it does not change the fact this case happened. All the information about magic bullets, JFK's brain missing, the assaults on Jim Garrison and the players involved in New Orleans are all true. That is what is lost in all the complaining that a good chunk of this actually happened. I would also suggest people listen to Oliver Stone's audio commentary done a few years later to get a better idea where some of the facts and myths lie. The hobos just turned out to be hobos, but his Nightline interview is very revealing where he was attacked like Garrison was. The commentary is worth the price of the DVD alone.
As for the movie, it is one of the last films out there that requires you to think and think hard. Even if 10% to 20% is Hollywood, the other 80% to 90% is pretty scarily true especially the Oswald stuff. You probably have the greatest group of actors ever in this picture. Oldman, Tommy Lee, Costner, Martin Sheen, Sissy, Jack Lemon and Joe Peschi. You even have Walter Mathuew and John Candy in small roles. You will never get that much talent into one film ever again and its probably due to the talent this film was made. All the actors sans Sutherland have a passion about this film. Sutherland has not helped matters saying its all nonsense even after knowing he was playing a real Colonel. If this movie was done in the 70s or 80s, everyone would be black listed especially Stone who probably has not fully recovered from this film. Yet, it is a heroic effort about heroic people. Garrison and his staff are the real heroes who did win the case years later in the arena of public opinion. Most polls show a belief that Kennedy was killed by a conspiracy, its just which one. That was the point of the case and it like the movie succeed all expectations.
After reading the FAQ about this movie, someone did a great smear job about this film. All of those sans the technical parts should be deleted. The Beltran/Shaw confession did happen which was the turn point of the case.