A heady, and to some infuriating, stew of fact, fiction, conjecture, and paranoia, Oliver Stone’s JFK is not a spy movie, but the CIA is a constant presence. The story of New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison’s attempt to bring a conviction in the assassination of President Kennedy, the film practically lays blame at the feet of the Agency, the Pentagon, and President Lyndon Johnson himself. It’s riveting to watch if you don’t care about the truth—Stone cuts between film stocks, incorporates still photos and documentary footage, bleached out tableaus and meticulous reconstructions, especially of the assassination scene itself. His use of the Zapruder footage remains shocking to this day. It’s hard to imagine that the CIA didn’t put a permanent tail on Stone following this film.
