JFK: The Day the Nation Cried
This 1988 documentary narrated by actor James Earl Jones provides a  generally admiring overview of the Kennedy years coupled with a touching look at  how a shocked nation reacted to the death of JFK.  Notables including former  President Gerald Ford, former Speaker of the House Thomas "Tip" O'Neill,  violinist Isaac Stern, and historian and Kennedy confidante Arthur Schlesinger  Jr. reminisce about Kennedy, remembering how he inspired them and how his death  touched them deeply. Home movies of the Kennedy family provide some biographical  color. Rarely seen breaking news coverage aired only on a local Dallas station  and interviews with witnesses to the assassination, including home movie buff  Abraham Zapruder (who had just taken his famed film of Kennedy's motorcade),  show the immediate reaction to the tragedy. This documentary is competently  assembled, and while it doesn't provide any particularly surprising insights, it  does offer a reasonably balanced look at Kennedy's achievements and lasting  legacy.--Robert J. McNamara