Hits A Number Of Great Beats, But Doesn't Add Up To Anything In The End

Rating: 4/10 (25 February 2017)

As generally a fan of biopics, I was intrigued by the notion of profiling Jackie Kennedy. This film sets about to do that task with aplomb, featuring a quirky soundtrack, great acting, and a few great character beats. However, while watching the credits roll, I was disappointed that the overall experience didn't seem to add up to anything. I really never understood what the movie was supposed to be all about.
For a basic plot summary, "Jackie" is structured around an interview given by Jackie Kennedy (Natalie Portman) to a reporter (Billy Crudup) not too long after JFK's assassination. During the interview, the film flashes back to key points as Jackie is talking about them, from her iconic televised tour of the White House to the day of the assassination, and finally its aftermath with Jackie steadfastly planning the funeral arrangements.
Let's start with the good: -Portman was wonderful as Jackie. There were definitely some very emotional moments in this movie, and they worked for me due to Portman's ability to pull them off. -Some great scenes where the movie re-creates their historical counterpart, like the White House TV tour and the JFK funeral. Almost uncanny how the effects can look so much like the original. -A quirky soundtrack that I felt really worked, including some great tunes from the "Camelot" musical.
The big problem with "Jackie", however, is that I didn't really understand what the film was all about, or what message was trying to be conveyed. Most of the time, it just felt like a bunch of disconnected scenes instead of a coherent whole. While some of those scenes "work" (are emotional/investing), others do not and feel odd.
My exact rating for "Jackie" would be 2.5 stars, but I can't even bump it up to an "okay" 3 because it was such an odd viewing experience. The acting was solid, the music was interesting enough to rattle around in my brain for awhile, and it even emotionally moved me a couple of times, but everything felt so disconnected and nothing "took" in the sense that it made me think about Jackie or the other issues in the film in any new light.
Simply put: I want to like "Jackie" more than I actually do, but when it comes right down to it the film just isn't all that good.