Review

Review Date: 13-November-11
Spoiler Rating: Medium
Juju Judgment: Just OK

J. Edgar (2011)

As the biopic J. Edgar shows, John Edgar Hoover was at the forefront of American crime-fighting from the 1920s to the early 1970s, a big slice of history chock full of momentous events. As a young agent for the Justice Department he investigated terrorist acts by anarchists who were spurred by the Communist Revolution. He helped solve the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby and used the rise of the mafia to establish the FBI as an autonomous force. He elevated fingerprinting to an organized forensic science and encouraged the popular image of the heroic G-man. Through ten presidencies he earned a national reputation (and some disgust) as a hard-nosed crusader against the enemies of decency and Uncle Sam.

Screenwriter Dustin Lance Black and director Clint Eastwood use Hoover's professional achievements as background and bait. Their goal is revealing J. Edgar the man, and, like many movie biographers, they only succeed part way. Despite an engaging performance by Leonardo DiCaprio, who plays Hoover throughout his life, the movie seems to depict a classic personality type rather than an individual. This Hoover is a repressed, meticulous nerd who lives in the shadow of an inflexible and overbearing mother (Judi Dench). He bases his self-worth on adhering to the rules, or appearing to doing so, and despises anyone who might be considered politically or socially radical, such as Martin Luther King Jr. Ever vigilant of his image and authority, he embellishes the truth to his own FBI biographers and amasses secret files on presidents and their families to protect his position through blackmail.

What about this close-minded, puny soul inspired loyalty from Helen Gandy, his lifelong secretary and secret-keeper (Naomi Watts), and Clyde Tolson, the deputy who stood by his side all his years? J. Edgar doesn't answer this question beyond suggesting that some people love what they pity. Tolson (smoothly portrayed by Armie Hammer) is a giving, patient friend and would-be lover whom Hoover is too terrified to embrace. This is the film's tragic (and speculative) pith, that Hoover had enough warmth to generate erotic affection but not enough courage to accept it in unconventional form. The movie turns the famous rumors about his fondness for cross-dressing into an expression of grief for the woman who told him she'd rather have a dead son than a gay one. In scenes like this, a moderately important figure from a complicated age becomes the poster child for mother-complex and inhibition.

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