Released in 2011 J. Edgar is a Clint Eastwood directed film about the career of former FBI director J. Edgar Hoover. The film stars a pretty good cast consisting of actors like Leonardo DiCaprio, Naomi Watts, Judi Dench, and Armie Hammer. It did OK at the box-office and did garner a few award nominations (mostly for DiCaprio's performance). However, it wasn't a huge hit and it received mixed reviews. As of this post, it holds a 43% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 6.5/10 on the IMDb.
A common complaint I hear levied against this movie is that it's too slow and, as a result, kind of boring. Now, I think the film is far from perfect but, it does have a few key elements that work for me and I think make it a perfectly enjoyable movie. First off, Leonardo DiCaprio's performance is really good. The film alternates between an older Hoover and his younger self, as he recounts the stories of his long career. I think that in both instances, as the young and old Hoover, DiCaprio does a solid job. Additionally, I think that both Hoover and the early years of the FBI are interesting topics.
To be fair, the movie isn't all good. For example; some of the old man make-up (particularly that applied to Armie Hammer) is unconvincing and, as stated earlier, the film is a bit slow. It doesn't drag so much that it becomes frustrating but, there are some scenes that probably could've been trimmed down, reworked, or cut out completely. One thing that does bug me though is the drab color palette. I'm fine with some color correction to make a film and characters feel muted and a little cold, but why so many directors go for this 'concrete gray' look I'll never understand.
Overall, I like this one. Is it my favorite DiCaprio performance? No. Is it my favorite film directed by Clint Eastwood? No. And honestly, if you're interested in checking out a film about the early history of the FBI then I'd recommend 1959's The FBI Story starring James Stewart over this one. That being said, I think this is a solid movie and I give it a 3.5 out of 5.
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