Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1062452
DGA QUARTERLY 87 > J. EDGAR FBI founder J. Edgar Hoover has long been denounced as an unscrupulous figure who collected compromising info on his and the country's perceived enemies, including sitting presidents, to solidify his power. But Clint Eastwood's 2011 biopic paints Hoover with a more nuanced brush—as a patriot of deep moral convictions who sometimes exceeded his jurisdiction to ensure the nation's security. "Sometimes you need to bend the rules a little in order to keep the country safe," says Leonardo DiCaprio as Hoover in the film. Eastwood also presents Hoover's rumored homosexuality as fact, a detail that riled many devotees in the agency. And it's this conflict between the private man and the public figure that lays the foundation for Eastwood's empathetic approach. > THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE In this feverish 1962 Cold War thriller, director John Frankenheimer weaves together several elements that played on the national fears of the time: the self-entitlement of political dynasties, the public face that disguises nefarious intentions, potential spies within D.C.'s ranks, the idea of a puppet government controlled by enemy forces and the so- called "domino effect" posed by our Communist adversaries. The players include a brainwashed war hero, his Lady Macbeth-like mother and a rabble-rousing, McCarthy-like demagogue bent on destabilizing democracy. It all adds up to a surprisingly prescient classic, and bravura filmmaking by a director who was not afraid to push buttons. PHOTOS: PHOTOFEST