The story of one of the biggest scandals in American political history is told by Pittsford resident and director John Curran in his new feature film, Chappaquiddick.
With Australian actor Jason Clark playing the lead role of Ted Kennedy, this film explores the night of Kennedy’s car crash into a channel on Chappaquiddick Island, the death of Mary Jo Kopechne, the immediate aftermath, subsequent cover up, and resulting legacy.
Curran, a film veteran with seven directorial credits and experience working with stars like Robert De Niro, Edward Norton, and Naomi Watts, was at first hesitant to take on his first political story.
“I was worried about it being a one-dimensional hit piece,” says Curran. “It’s a tough subject, but the script I read was very balanced, nuanced, and compelling.”
After digesting the script written by Taylor Allen and Andrew Logan, Curran felt further inspired to direct Chappaquiddick by our most recent presidential election and his desire to see more accountability in politics.
“During the primary season of 2016, I recognized that we were embroiled with scandals on both sides of the aisle and I was kind of disgusted that I was even hesitant to tell this story,” says Curran. “It’s been fifty years since it happened and ten years since Teddy died, I felt like it was time to reexamine this chapter in his life as part of his legacy.”
Clarke, who has a shocking physical resemblance to the late senator, nails Kennedy’s complicated ethos by displaying a complex, confused, unconfident character who is at times sympathetic and more often than not, incredibly vain.
The audience sees the massive familial and existential pressure on Kennedy through interactions between him and his father, Joe, played by Bruce Dern. How these pressures manifest themselves, in the case of Chappaquiddick at least, are a lack of empathy and responsibility for the death of Kopecchne.
Clarke is surrounded by a cast of brilliant supporting actors including Kate Mara, who gives Kopechne a strong personality and depth that is typically ignored in retellings of this tragedy. Kennedy’s right-hand men, Joseph Durgan and Paul Markham, are played by Ed Helms and Jim Gaffigan respectively. These traditionally comedic actors exhibit strong dramatic chops while providing the occasional deadpan humor present in Chappaquiddick’s script.
Overall, through remarkable acting, quick, thoughtful dialogue, deft storytelling, and efficient pacing, Chappaquiddick succeeds as an entertaining film and historical anecdote, one that Curran hopes can inspire a conversation about modern day politics.
Chappaquiddick is in theaters now.
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