The Last Son – Chappaquiddick (2017)

Directed by: John Curran | 101 minutes | drama, history | Actors: Jason Clarke, Kate Mara, Ed Helms, Bruce Dern, Jim Gaffigan, Olivia Thirlby, Clancy Brown, Taylor Nichols, John Fiore, Gillian Mariner Gordon, Katie Henoch, Lexie Rothe, Angela Hope Smith, Vince Tycer, Victor Warren, David De Beck, Barry Press

There were once in America four brothers named Kennedy. Brother Joe died as a 29-year-old pilot during World War II. Brother John made it to president but was shot dead in Dallas. Brother Bobby was murdered before he could become president. Brother Edward also wanted to be president. It all went smoothly until he attended a party for intimates on the picturesque Chappaquiddick Peninsula off the coast of Massachusetts. That’s where it went wrong.

The American feature film ‘The Last Son’ (‘Chappaquiddick’) is about this unfortunate event and (especially) about its aftermath. We see Edward Kennedy drop out of a party for former campaign workers with one of the girls in attendance, Mary Jo Kopechne. When they make their way to the beach in the middle of the night, things go hopelessly wrong. Edward drives his car off a bridge into the water, manages to escape from the car himself and runs away like a hare. Not a smart move for someone with political ambitions.

In the movie ‘The Last Son’, the accident takes up only a small part of the time, most of it is about trying to maintain Edward’s good name. First, it’s his own loyal cronies, like Cousin Joey, who support Edward. Later on, all kinds of heavyweights from the entourage of Edward’s (horrible) father Joe join. Their advice regularly disregards the not very bright Edward.

Although Chappaquiddick is an event of years, it is the subject of all times. We see how moral objections and purely human considerations have to give way to political survival. Certainly in Trump times it is all very recognizable, the shifting of blame, the lying and twisting, the framing, the sickening rationalizations. In addition to being recognizable, it is also fascinating, especially for people who are interested in the ethical side of political business. And for people who have a soft spot for the sixties, because besides being a political drama ‘The Last Son’ is a beautiful sketch of a cherished time, with all the music, clothing and cars that entails.

With its mostly unsympathetic and opportunistic characters, ‘The Last Son’ isn’t a movie that works very much on feeling. That does not make it less of a quality, but it ensures that not everyone will enjoy it. Not a sensitive drama, but a pessimistic view of political affairs.