Chappaquiddick
Produced and distributed by Entertainment Studios
Directed by John Curran
Screenplay by Taylor Allen and Andrew Logan
A Quiet Place
Produced by Platinum Dunes
Directed and written by John Krasinski
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
On July 18, 1969, Sen. Edward Kennedy infamously drove off a bridge on Chappaquiddick Island. He had left a late-night party with an aide named Mary Jo Kopechne supposedly to take her to the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard. His Oldsmobile flipped upside down in Poucha Pond and filled with what he later called “murky” water. He managed to escape, but left Miss Kopechne to die. He claimed he had gone to seek help but, as it now seems, he was most intent on protecting his political future.
Before I go further, I must confess my deep dislike for all things Kennedy, most especially the reverence reflexively accorded the family members no matter how they behave.
That said, I will try to be evenhanded in what follows. Let’s first address Chappaquiddick’s accuracy. Screenwriters Taylor Allen and Andrew Logan and director John Curran have portrayed the then 37-year-old Kennedy as an immature and self-absorbed lightweight, accustomed to pushing around those socially beneath him. ...