These overlooked performances range from lead roles in unacknowledged classics to small but pivotal roles in well-known movies. The intention is to set the record straight and to give proper credit to the actors behind the Fredos and the Constanze Mozarts -- some of whom are part of our collective imagination, even if we've never quite acknowledged it was their talent that put them there.
Bruce Greenwood in "Thirteen Days": Without imitating JFK, Greenwood captured the essence of what we imagine to have been the private Kennedy, playing him as a reserved, intelligent man almost, but not quite, over his head during the Cuban missile crisis.
- Mick LaSalle . SF Chronicle 8/10/03

It is, however, Canadian actor Greenwood, as JFK, who shines brightest. Smart enough to avoid getting completely sucked into replicating those regal, Bostonian tics, he goes for the essence of Kennedy, presenting a rarely seen side of the man: the intelligence, integrity and sheer nerve to quite literally hold the fate of the world in his hands for 13 terrifying days.
-Ian Nathan, Empire 4/01

My choice for best picture of the year is 13 Days, which recreates the Kennedy White House during the Cuban missile crisis. Kevin Costner is the only star in this mesmerizing political thriller, featuring a perfectly cast Canadian actor, Bruce Greenwood, as the 35th president at his finest hour.
-Jeffrey Lyons MSNBC

The real stars of the film are the Kennedy brothers, John and Robert, who are accurately and movingly portrayed by Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp. Greenwood's performance suggests Kennedy's tactical smarts and human compassion, as well as his fallibility. Kennedy is certainly portrayed as a great President--a man of strong nerve and even stronger understanding that he holds in his hand the potential deaths of millions of people--but the film is not overly glorifying. He has his moments of weakness and outbursts of anger. After all, he is only human.
-James Kendrick, The Film Desk

An Australian-born director (Roger Donaldson) and a Canadian-born actor (Bruce Greenwood) are the driving forces behind a taut, enthralling film depiction ("Thirteen Days") of a tense moment in American history (the Cuban blockade of 1962). ... Kennedy (Bruce Greenwood), Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy (Steven Culp) and adviser Kenny O'Donnell (Kevin Costner) are the three men on whom it falls to figure out what to do -- but especially JFK, whom Greenwood plays as a passionate dramatic hero, his large, young-looking blue eyes filled with both worry and strength. ... He's [Costner] too overshadowed by the dynamic duo of Greenwood and Culp, anyway, and his Boston accent is laughable.
-Eric D. Snider, The Daily Herald

Greenwood is brilliant as JFK
-Tim Lammers, WCVB-TV / The Boston Channel

While Greenwood (Double Jeopardy) nails JFK's distinctive accent and posture, his portrayal goes beyond mere mimicry; he credibly shows Kennedy rising to the challenge of making the hard decisions that will affect the world's fate.
-Leah Rozen, People Magazine 1/22/01

Costner, Greenwood and Culp manage to create and sustain an atmosphere that is once bewildered and capable, frightened and defiant. Greenwood and Culp have the more problematic roles in JFK and RFK, as they are asked to at once evoke well-known public personas and reveal them in unguarded, private moments. They are more than up to the task, following Anthony Hopkins' 'Nixon' performance by using crisp character suggestion more than outright mimicry.
-24 frames per second

Most notable are Bruce Greenwood as JFK and Michael Fairman as Adlai Stevenson.
-Matt Easterbrook

Greenwood and Culp do a good job portraying the Kennedys, even though the Boston accents are inconsistent and they don't really look like them.
-Robert Roten, Laramie Movie Scope 1/22/01

Like "Nixon," the recent film "Thirteen Days" uses the story of an American president to render complicated political issues accessible. As Kennedy, Bruce Greenwood downplays the Boston accent and personal improprieties to better convey the intelligence that steered the nation through the Cuban missile crisis. Along with Hopkins' performance in "Nixon," it's one of the great portrayals of an American president because it aspires to psychological truth instead of cosmetic illusion.
-Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch 1/21/01

Luckily, he's overshadowed by Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp, as Jack and Bobby Kennedy, respectively. It's difficult to successfully portray an icon on-screen. Take it too far, and you end up looking like Rich Little; hold too much back, and the punch isn't there. But Greenwood and Culp never approach caricature. Both actors employ very slight Harvard accents, and they seldom resort to striking well-known Kennedy poses. Greenwood has the meatier role of the two.
-Paul Tatara, Good Authority 1/19/01

... but Costner should have paid attention to Greenwood, who doesn't try to imitate Jack. He actually gives a good acting performance ...
-Matt Heffernan, FilmHead.com 1/19/01

Crisply riveting, finally gut-wrenching look at 1962 Cuban missile crisis from within Oval Office through eyes of JFK aide Kenneth P. O'Donnell, played by Kevin Costner, with excellent Bruce Greenwood, Steven Culp as President Kennedy and Attorney General Robert Kennedy, respectively.
-Parents' Film Guide, Seattle P-I.com

Casting lesser-known actors Bruce Greenwood ("Double Jeopardy") as JFK and Steven Culp ("J.A.G.") as Robert Kennedy was brilliant - it's hard to remember that you're watching actors. The bonds between the three old friends, the two Kennedys and O'Donnell, are portrayed with such talent that they totally make the film.
-Oliver B. Johnson III, The Pitt News, University of Pittsburgh

Costner may get top billing, but the real stars of "Thirteen Days" are Bruce Greenwood ("Double Jeopardy") and Stephen Culp ("Nurse Betty") who turn in truly masterful portrayals of John and Bobby Kennedy, respectfully. Besides looking the part, Greenwood has the accent and demeanor of JFK, even slightly limping at times, giving us a glimpse of his World War II injury. ... Greenwood and Culp talk to each other the way brothers do, bringing the Kennedy name out of myth and back down to reality, where it can be examined honestly.
-Jeff Roedel, The Reveille, Louisiana State University

The impression that Greenwood gives the audience of Kennedy is a little different from what one might expect. He displays President Kennedy as a strong-willed man that stands by his decisions and refuses to let the Joint-Chiefs influence him on the Cuban situation.
-Ryan Freeman, The Daily Beacon 1/19/01

President John F. Kennedy (Greenwood, showing he can do so much more than be a lame villain like he was in "Double Jeopardy"), his brother Robert (Steven Culp) and O'Donnell are the trifecta: all three have equal say in the decisions made in the White House. ... Greenwood is dead-on as JFK, making him a real person with mannerisms like struggling to sit up and sit down (from a World War II injury) and sitting in the Carolina chair, which was his famous rocking chair.
-Ryan Hill, TechnicianOnline.com, North Carolina State University 1/18/01

Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp, as JFK and RFK, are amazing and give very impressive and impactful performances. They also use the accents, but because they are not as well known, it's not as odd to hear them speak this way. They have a real comeraderie that appears genuine. All one usually sees of JFK is the file footage of him seeming confident and in control. Greenwood's portrayal of an intelligent man desperately cautious, trying to make the right decision for the American public and the world is deeply touching and powerful.
-Lisa Skrzyniarz, Crazy for Cinema

The plus side of the production can be largely credited to Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood, who has done some fine independent work over the years. His portrayal of JFK is probably the sharpest and most accurate Hollywood has ever presented.
-Paul Kopasz Louisville Eccentric Observer 1/17/01

The performances given by Bruce Greenwood as John F. Kennedy, Steven Culp as Robert Kennedy and Kevin Costner as Kenny O'Donnell are both believable and compelling.
-Seth Felton, Daily Nebraskan 1/17/01

Bruce Greenwood, who only vaguely looks like Kennedy, does an outstanding job with his voice and his mannerisms to recall perhaps one of the most well-known figures in American history. There is a great deal of pain in the man who holds so much in his hands and who agonizes over a decision that has horrific consequences if not made correctly. Greenwood wears the pressure like a shroud that only he can carry.
- Sherry Crawford, Evansville Courier & Press 1/17/01

It's a flawless ensemble from the sharp Kennedy casting (Bruce Greenwood's exemplary voice and movement as JFK.
-Armond White New York Press 1/17/01

But the film's most brilliant aspect can be found in Bruce Greenwood's amazing performance as President Kennedy. Greenwood brings so much depth and feeling to this role. You can see that he's trapped between two things; giving the military their war or trying to save the US through the long and arduous process of a blockage. His performance is just brilliant and worthy of a supporting actor nomination.
-Sébastien Pharand, Moviefan Online 1/16/01

Bruce Greenwood as JFK gives a masterful performance. Capturing the essence of the man instead of the icon, his work is clean, assured, and always interesting to watch.
-Michael Elliott, Crosswalk.com 1/16/01

And this it does beautifully-thanks in large part to Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp's flawless performances as John and Robert Kennedy........ Surprisingly, Greenwood, Culp and Donaldson do it subtly and with restraint. When they could have played many scenes angrily - screaming at their hawkishly ignorant military advisors - they instead decide to be understated and show their displeasure and helplessness with their eyes and posture. Especially Greenwood. ... But the president must be thoughtful and dignified. Greenwood is so good at conveying this that at any time you can look at him and see how the quandary has weighed him down but still know he believes in himself enough to somehow end the situation peacefully.
-Josh Schollmeyer, Cinescape Online 1/16/01

John Fitzgerald Kennedy is portrayed by Bruce Greenwood ("Double Jeopardy," "The Sweet Hereafter," "Rules of Engagement") as a man totally overwhelmed, almost frozen, by the swiftly unreeling events. He is always troubled, as if he is thinking about the millions of dead Americans should he not keep the situation under control.
-John Stanley, Soundwaves TV Online 1/16/01

And as JFK, Bruce Greenwood clearly steals the show. He doesn't really look like the character, but he gives the role just the right touch of glamour and charisma, as well as the kind of self-doubt that makes him an appealing hero and suggests demons below his controlled surface. It's a terrific performance that wonderfully anchors the movie.
-William Arnold, Seattle Post-Intelligencer 1/16/01

Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp are excellent as John and Robert Kennedy, respectively. Both portray their now legendary historical figures as smart but fallible men saddled with a great burden. Their reactions are believable, and most importantly, very human.
-Andrew Manning, Radio Free Entertainment 1/16/01

But the performances of Bruce Greenwood as John F. Kennedy and Steven Culp as his brother Robert are what really breathe life into the words from those 13 days in 1962 when the Cold War came closest to burning red hot. ... But again, the glue that holds ''Thirteen Days'' together are Greenwood as JFK and Culp as Bobby. They don't do imitations of the Kennedy brothers, but they seem to capture a spirit of the two men that transports viewers back to the time when they tried to keep unlit the fuse on World War III.
-Craig Kopp, Cincinnati Post Living 1/16/01

Bruce Greenwood did a tremendous job as the young President Kennedy, showing how Kennedy was strong enough to stand by his morals and values, even as his most trusted advisors were urging him to go to war. At the same time, Greenwood was able to portray Kennedy as someone who needed help and was able to turn to his brother for guidance.
-Sujit 'Chief' Chawla, Wolfpack Productions 1/15/01

Yet Bruce Greenwood, a little-known Canadian actor, has made something remarkable out of this poisoned plum. His JFK, in the Cuban Missile Crisis docudrama "Thirteen Days," quickly moves beyond physical and vocal impersonation to find a harried man in extremis, a young man surrounded by "knowledgeable" cold warriors who have little faith in him. His only rudder is a root belief that America ought not to stumble into an annihilating war with the Soviet Union. From this belief, and Greenwood's craft, a hero emerges...... In this engrossing film, you see Greenwood being measured by the many wily veterans in the cast, and see that he measures up. It's a performance that begins as a test and ends as a presidential triumph.
- Richard Corliss Time Magazine 1/15/01

Instead, the film succeeds because of the subtle but precise work of Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp as the brothers Kennedy. At first thought, you wouldn't think Ashley Judd's evil husband from Double Jeopardy as the JFK type, but Greenwood nails it, and not by showboating John's charisma but rather by focusing on the underlying intensity and intelligence. It also doesn't hurt that both Greenwood and Culp downplay the infamous Kennedy accent, leaving Costner to hem and haw like some sort of bad "pahk the cah in the yahd" joke. It's enough to make you yearn for the here-today-gone-tomorrow accent Costner used in Robin Hood.
-Karen Lancaster Brown, Blockbuster.com 1/16/01

Greenwood, whose range has carried him from the lonely widower of "The Sweet Hereafter" to the creepy husband of "Double Jeopardy," gives a star-making performance. Like Culp, he doesn't try to copy a Kennedy. He limps a little and has an unobtrusive Massachusetts accident, but he mostly aims for the vitality and forcefulness of the man: His eyes snap, his voice crackles, his will stiffens. He's so appealing we could elect him president right now - if he weren't Canadian.
-Lawrence Toppman, The Charlotte Observer 1/14/01

The real linchpin of the movie, though, is Bruce Greenwood (Sweet Hereafter). His performance as JFK is critical to the movie's success, and he pulls it off with gusto. Great but not perfect, heroic but not saintly, his portrayal achieves a perfect balance. Despite the film makers' attempt to beatify Kennedy, Greenwood keeps his feet firmly on the ground with a sharp and understated representation. ... Greenwood also makes a wise decision to forego Kennedy's inimitable New England accent.
-J. Robert Parks, The Phantom Tollbooth 1/14/01

Thanks in part to Vancouver actor Bruce Greenwood, he's more Prince Hamlet than King Arthur -- a three- dimensional human facing the largest crisis of his life and not quite knowing what to do.
-Katherine Monk, CBC Infoculture 1/14/01

The great character actor Bruce Greenwood (best known for his work in Atom Egoyan's The Sweet Hereafter and Exotica) does not overplay the late president like a monument of Americana. His Kennedy is unlike any other previously brought to the screen, charming, domineering, thoughtful, and eloquent. He was a real man, with real demons and that is exactly the way that Greenwood plays him. ... The film may be a star vehicle for Costner (who, by the way, has not been in a good film since Clint Eastwood's A Perfect World in 1993) and a star making moment for Bruce Greenwood, but I'll admit that a great deal of my attention was pointed at one of the 'little people.'
-David Perry, Xiibaro Productions v.3 no.2

Coming off truly embarrassing potboilish turns in Double Jeopardy and Rules of Engagement, Bruce Greenwood pleasantly shocks with what may go down as the best John Fitzgerald Kennedy in the annals of cinema. (Okay, there's not a sterling JFK filmography, but still) Certainly the most conflicted player in this nuclear eye-blinking contest, Greenwood creates a Jack with a torrent of self-doubt equaled only by the strength of his resolve. The Cuban Missile Crisis is what defined Kennedy as a President and a man, and Greenwood embodies that character-crossroads with power and humanity. Unless Gore asks for a recount of Academy ballots, Greenwood may very well have certified a Supporting Actor nomination. It's not just that his accent is believable (though it certainly is that), but more so that his JFK is credible. ... Greenwood and Culp make us believe we're in that White House, voyeurs of history.
-Jeffrey Huston, BELIEVE ME 1/14/01

There's a special bond among him, JFK (Bruce Greenwood, in a rigorous and believable performance) and Bobby Kennedy (Steven Culp, likewise impressive).
-Donald Munro, The Fresno Bee 1/14/01

In a sterling performance by Bruce Greenwood, John Kennedy is presented as a man who was getting it from all sides and who was mired in indecision.
-Todd Lothery, News & Observer 1/14/01

Greenwood also assimilates into his portrayal some of the physical details that weren't always seen in those film clips. JFK's constant pain from various ailments, even his mildly awkward gait, the result of his lifelong back difficulties, is most apparent in Greenwood's scenes with Culp and Costner...Perhaps the most revelatory aspect of Greenwood's portrayal is the intimacy and emotional color he brings to a voice that still haunts several generations of Americans.
-Gene Seymour Newsday 1/14/01

. In other words, this isn't a movie about John F. Kennedy the Icon but rather John F. Kennedy the Man, and the excellent performance by Bruce Greenwood (The Sweet Hereafter) goes a long way toward providing this picture with its moral center.
-Matt Brunson Creative Loafing - Charlotte 1/13/01

Having said that, it must be noted that Bruce Greenwood makes a splendid John F. Kennedy, self-assured and assertive without overplaying his hand. Greenwood looks like JFK without straining to do so, and his quiet authority gives the movie its spine.
-Robert Denerstein, Inside Denver 1/13/01

... but the chief acting honors here go to Greenwood, as JFK, and Culp, as RFK. Both go beyond accent and look to the intangibles that truly define the men.
-Susan Stark, Detroit News 1/13/01

Bruce Greenwood portrays not the Camelot JFK or the Ratpack JFK but the commander-in-chief JFK, one whose chronic back pain may well stem from the burden of his office. He's not a perfect look-alike, but the size of gestures and, strangely, the complexion of his skin seem completely on-target.
-Curt Holman Creative Loafing - Atlanta 1/13/01

Familiar Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood (he was Ashley Judd's treacherous husband in "Double Jeopardy") as JFK and newcomer Steven Culp as Bobby get to "interpret" their characters, thereby making them a seamless part of the large ensemble. There is no "acting" here, just little gestures and nuances -- such as Greenwood folding his arms like JFK and Culp stooping over and hugging his body like Bobby -- that manage to create an uncanny resemblance to the famous men being played. Greenwood and Culp also read their dialogue with virtually no Boston accents, an excellent decision compared to Costner's aggressively overdone New England enunciations.
-Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee 1/13/01

Greenwood ("Double Jeopardy") makes a good JFK, especially when it comes to putting a fine line on the doubt that he faces. Greenwood's president is not indecisive, but he isn't about to ignore the ramifications of his decision, which, if things go wrong, could be the last decision anyone makes. We leave wishing we could see more of Greenwood.
-Jeff Strickler, Star Tribune 1/13/01

It is Bruce Greenwood as JFK who really stands out from the large ensemble, making this an incredibly tense profile of courage under fire.
-Q Syndicate, Planet Out 1/13/01

Costner, Greenwood, Culp and their compatriots - including Dylan Baker as Robert McNamara, Michael Fairman as Adlai Stevenson, Kevin Conway as Gen. Curtis LeMay and Len Cariou as Dean Acheson - all play off one another with the restrained, intense zest of men of vaulting ambition honoring social propriety (if sometimes only barely) while recognizing that destiny is in their grasp. It's an admirable ensemble job. Greenwood and Culp, as the two most recognizable figures in the story, both capture the Kennedy manner without trying for outright impersonations.
-Abbie Bernstein, iF Magazine 1/13/01

The Kennedy boys, played by Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp are absolutely mesmerizing. And thank god they didn't do that stupid Pepperidge Farm guy's voice most actors use for all the folks from Boston...Argh.
-Emily Blunt, Blunt Review 1/13/01

Still, the film offers some keen moments between the brothers, made especially fascinating because Greenwood and Culp have so clearly nailed their well-known body language, their shorthand communication with each other through gestures and glances.
-Cynthia Fuchs, PopMatters 1/13/01

[Greenwood's] JFK is a class performance all the way, and a lesson to any actor struggling to represent a historical figure onscreen.
-Chris Kaltenbach, The Baltimore Sun 1/13/01

Thirteen Days is no vanity project for its star -- he's part of the ensemble of players in the Kennedy White House, admirably sharing the screen with the talented if lesser-known Bruce Greenwood (as John F. Kennedy) and Steven Culp (as Bobby Kennedy). ... Through his balanced, thoughtful direction, Donaldson serves both the historic memory of the Kennedy era as well as the human reality of the brothers, thanks also to the impressive performances of Greenwood and Culp.
-Jack Garner, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle 1/13/01

Most of the players blend together, but Greenwood and Culp are fine as the Kennedys.
-Betsy Pickle, Knoxville News-Sentinel 1/13/01

Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood plays JFK, and he's terrific in the role. He certainly isn't a Kennedy look-alike, but he's got the body language and voice quality.
-Bill Diehl, ABCNews.com 1/12/01

. As the film continues, Costner’s bleak performances is drowned out by the vigorous performances of Greenwood and Culp who definitely show they are a huge step beyond Costner presently.
-Dean Kish Soothsayer Movie Reviews

But what saves the film are two central performances -- Bruce Greenwood as John F. Kennedy and Steven Culp as Robert F. Kennedy -- and director Roger Donaldson's insistence on letting the story tell itself, quickly and for the most part without flamboyant overdramatization......Greenwood, a yeoman's yeoman who usually plays vapid pretty boys, quickly transcends Kennedy's quirks and graces. It's a performance, not an imitation, and you feel the character's intellectual and emotional submersion in his terrible dilemma, as well as the crunching weight of history upon his shoulders. He's never macho in the blustery style of movie heroics, but a reserved man, his arms usually folded as if he's worried about his own frailties and his nation's in a hostile world.
-Stephen Hunter Washington Post 1/12/01

Greenwood is extraordinary, creating a Kennedy who seems familiar without becoming a narrow impersonation.
-Dave Kehr, CitySearch 1/12/01

[Costner's] the movie's star power, but he generously deflects the limelight to Bruce Greenwood, the fine Canadian actor, who evokes every bit of JFK's dazzling charisma and intelligence, yet also suggests the depths of anxiety and self-doubt he felt during the crisis.
-Joanna Connors Cleveland Plain Dealer 1/12/01

Greenwood portrays the president with a complexity that's worthy of an Oscar nomination. Kennedy had suffered one embarrassment related to Cuba - the unsuccessful Bay of Pigs invasion -- in 1961. Greenwood effectively conveys the maturity that the president had acquired since then......In one scene, you almost feel as if you're watching JFK reflect back to that mistake. Greenwood also says plenty with body language, through a knowing raise of a brow and subtle roll of the eyes when a general suggests something ludicrous. He also captures JFK's sense of humor. Overall it's a masterful turn from an actor who had run the risk of being typecast as a heavy with roles in such movies as Double Jeopardy and Rules of Engagement. Costner may be the initial draw to Thirteen Days, but Greenwood is the star.
-George Thomas, Akron Beacon Journal 1/12/01

It's Greenwood, though, as the beleaguered JFK, who steals the picture with a nuanced, subtle performance. His Jack Kennedy is a man with neither options nor time, facing the gravest peril, and he plays what must have been a tremendously difficult role with panache and aplomb.
-Marc Savlov, The Austin Chronicle 1/12/01

Fortunately, Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp, as President John Kennedy and Bobby Kennedy, respectively, offer subtle suggestions, not absurd parodies, of their historical prototypes. ... Greenwood is smaller than our historical image of the president, and he looks a bit older, but that seems appropriate. Kennedy, in fact, looked much older up close, and also more frail, according to people who knew him. Greenwood's qppearance, as well as his quiet, sober demeanor, gives us the sense of seeing the private Kennedy. His performance is the best thing in the movie.
-Mick LaSalle, The San Francisco Chronicle 1/12/01

Mr. Greenwood has the most difficult job, to personify JFK in a style that never skirts caricature. He captures the chief executive's physical mannerisms and vocal cadences to a perfect extent and offers a touching study of an authoritative leader of conscience and conviction.
-Philip Wuntch, The Dallas Morning News 1/12/01

The best thing in it is Bruce Greenwood's JFK, showing us shrewdness, coolness, thoughtfulness, acuteness, weighing all the elements, thinking before he acts, yet anything but irresolute while he stalls for time. While awaiting his brother's take on what exactly the Kremlin is up to, he's also keeping the generals on a leash. When one says, ''You're in quite a pickle, Mr. President,'' he doesn't miss a beat. ''You're in it with me,'' he replies, an instant reality check.
-Jay Carr, The Boston Globe 1/12/01

The major standout is Greenwood - the villainous husband of Double Jeopardy and the bereaved father of The Sweet Hereafter - who gets us deeper inside John Kennedy, past the clipped accent and bedroom eyes to an inner pain and troubled intelligence that become quite convincing (as, to a lesser extent, does Culp's Bobby).
-Michael Wilmington, The Chicago Tribune 1/12/01

... but the real star of the movie is the Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood as President John F. Kennedy. Complementing Greenwood's intense, intelligent portrayal of the most powerful man in the world at the riskiest moment of the nuclear age is Steven Culp's fiery Robert Kennedy.
-Harper Barnes, St. Louis Post Dispatch 1/12/01

The sweep of the story occasionally obscures the individual personalities of some of the pivotal characters involved, although Greenwood's triumphant personification of JFK is one of the best portrayals of Kennedy to date. -Mark Burger, Winston-Salem Journal 1/12/01

Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood, who played a rat in both Double Jeopardy and Rules of Engagement, seizes his opportunity to be the hero this time around. He makes a compelling JFK, capturing the former president's essence without resorting to mere imitation. ... Greenwood and Culp subtly but forcefully convey the gravity of men walking a tightrope over the abyss.
-Todd Anthony, Sun-Sentinel 1/12/01

However, Canadian character actor Greenwood's portrayal of JFK steals the show; it is compelling and believable.
-Paul Clinton, CNN.com 1/12/01

As Kennedy, Bruce Greenwood is vaguely a look-alike and sound-alike, but like Anthony Hopkins in "Nixon," he gradually takes on the persona of the character, and we believe him.
-Roger Ebert, The Chicago Sun Times 1/12/01

There's enough available lore on the Kennedys that deep digging into their imagined psyches is unnecessary; still, it's sometimes fascinating to watch the brothers interact, because Greenwood and Culp have so clearly nailed their well-known body language, their shorthand communication with each other with gestures and glances.
-Cindy Fuchs, Philadelphia City Paper 1/12/01

Although [Greenwood] oesn't bear a strong resemblance to Kennedy, he brings off the role not so much through his appearance or his accent as he does by the looks of anxiety and conflict that cross his face as he wrestles with whether to respond to the Soviets aggressively or through peaceful negotiation.
-Robert Philpot, Fort Worth Star Telegram 1/12/01

Fortunately, co-stars Greenwood and Culp (who bears an eerie resemblance to RFK) both wisely avoid that temptation, and their excellent, more subtle performances help humanize their now-legendary characters.
-Jeff Vice, Deseret News 1/12/01

....Bruce Greenwood in a brilliant, low-key portrait....
-Jane Horwitz Sun Newspapers of Cleveland 1/12/01

A great pairing also enlivens "Thirteen Days" -- but neither of the pair is the movie's ostensible star, Kevin Costner. The standout duo in this riveting recounting of the Cuban Missile Crisis is Bruce Greenwood (the villain in "Double Jeopardy") and Steven Culp (who plays a CIA operative on TV's "J.A.G.") as John and Robert Kennedy. They don't exactly nail that "pahk yuh cah in Hah-vud Yahd" accent, but they do convey that old Kennedy confidence and coolness under pressure -- in this case, the pressure of avoiding a stumble into nuclear war over the discovery of Soviet nuclear missiles 90 miles off the Florida coast....Watching Greenwood and Culp re-create that Camelot feeling, though, is worth overlooking that third guy in the frame.
-Sean P. Means, The Salt Lake Tribune 1/12/01

.....his performance is so complete -- so Camelot-like in its understated confidence in the face of a crisis, that it is also one of the most honourable portraits of an American leader since Henry Fonda played a would-be presidential candidate in the timeless Gore Vidal-scripted The Best Man.
-Katherine Monk Vancouver Sun 1/12/01

The director, instead, filled that role with Bruce Greenwood, a relatively unsung actor with little or no resemblance to JFK. Greenwood ("Double Jeopardy") nevertheless gets the mannerisms and patterns of speech down pat, and so does Steven Culp as little brother Robert F. Kennedy.
-Philip Booth, Orlando Weekly

Bruce Greenwood's JFK is the old, idealized leader of a Camelot where tough decisions are balanced against a true desire for peace; Greenwood captures the essence not of Kennedy but of his image. There is none of the recidivist re-reading of the Kennedy legend here; this is the PT-109 hero, standing tall.
-Jay Stone Ottawa Citizen 1/12/01

Fighting Chances:
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
The Contender's sharky president Jeff Bridges scored a Golden Globe nomination, but once Thirteen Days goes wide, he'll likely lose votes to BRUCE GREENWOOD, who plays his more popular predecessor, John F. Kennedy.
Our choices: Albert Finney, Benicio Del Toro, Willem Dafoe, Joaquin Phoenix, Bruce Greenwood.
BEST PICTURE
For Your Consideration: We know Kevin Costner's Bah-ston accent is a bit jarring at times. But that shouldn't discourage anyone from appreciating Roger Doanldson's complex and riveting Cuban Missile Crises thriller THIRTEEN DAYS. Thanks to David Self's comprehensive yet brisk script and commanding performances by Costner, Bruce Greenwood, and Steven Culp, it's the rare historical drama that satisfies not only war buffs but also the clueless.
Entertainment Weekly 1/12/01

No less important to the piece is some soulful Kennedy impersonating from the charismatic Greenwood ("Double Jeopardy") ...
-James Berkshire, Hollywood.com 1/12/01

It's Greenwood, though, as the beleaguered JFK, who steals the picture with a nuanced, subtle performance. His Jack Kennedy is a man with neither options nor time, facing the gravest peril, and he plays what must have been a tremendously difficult role with panache and aplomb.
-Marc Savlov Austin Chronicle 1/12/01

But who really shines in this overall stellar cast are Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp (John and Robert Kennedy, respectively) as two brothers determined not to play into the hands of battle-hungry Pentagon leaders.
-E! Online 1/12/01

Bruce Greenwood's performance as President Kennedy is certain to snag him an Oscar nomination for best supporting performance. Greenwood shows how conflicted and torn Kennedy was and how great an emotional and physical toll each new decision took.
-Louis B. Hobson, Calgary Sun 1/12/01

However, Canadian character actor Greenwood's portrayal of JFK steals the show; it is compelling and believable.
-Paul Clinton, CNN 1/11/01

... while Bruce Greenwood, neatly underplaying his role, creates a John F. Kennedy that feels like a real person instead of a cultural icon. Impressive.
-Ed Johnson-Ott, NUVO Newsweekly 1/11/01

Thirteen Days may have Costner's name over the title, but it's Greenwood's movie
-Jody Seaborn, Palm Beach Post 1/11/01 Greenwood isn't portraying the idea of Kennedy -- he's playing the man, complete with war wounds and self-doubts.
-Eric Harrison, Houston Chronicle 1/11/01

Greenwood's portrayal of John Kennedy is tremendous. He's entirely believable, without ever seeming like he's working at an imitation. From Kennedy's painful back, to the tense spasms of muscle in his jaw during these long, high-pressure days, and his occasional loss of temper, Greenwood shows us a very real, and very human Kennedy.
-Brian Webster, Apollo Guide 1/11/01

...We have Bruce Greenwood -- a wonderful actor! -- who plays the President....
-Lisa Schwartzbauer, CNN Showbiz Today 1/11/01

No-names fill the remaining roles, with Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp particularly strong as Jack and Bobby Kennedy, respectively.
-Michael J. Legeros, Movie Hell 1/11/01

Vancouver's Bruce Greenwood does a creditable job as President Kennedy. JFK (intuitively played - not aped - by Vancouver's Greenwood) is under intense pressure from Pentagon hawks to level the site, invade Cuba and let the bombs fall where they may.
-John Griffin Montreal Gazette 1/11/01

Still, the standout is Greenwood's JFK. He doesn't look much like the president, and neither does he make much of an attempt (as Costner foolishly does) at the accent, but he conveys a quick mind, a combative will, a ready wit, and the charisma to prod others to do their best work for him. If his Kennedy didn't exist, Aaron Sorkin would have had to invent him. Thirteen Days may not be entirely accurate (a scene where future Vietnam hawk Robert McNamara stands up to a bellicose admiral rings especially false), but these days, we could do worse than a movie that gives us a president who inspires confidence and merits loyalty.
-Gary Susman, The Boston Phoenix 1/11/01

Because even though he [Costner] gets top billing attention on the poster, the real stars of this film are Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp as the Kennedy brothers. Their portrayals are two of the best and most human I've ever seen of these two near-mythical figures in American history. Culp has actually played RFK before in HBO's Norma Jean and Marilyn, but here he really gets to shine. And Greenwood is right with him every step of the way as the young Commander-in-Chief, who's in love with the job, but is fully aware of the consequences it may bring under extreme circumstances.
-eFilmCritic.com 1/11/01

Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp pretty much nail JFK and brother Bobby, respectively, from the distinctive body language to the timbre of voice - not excluding, of course, the perfect hair.....
-Lance Goldenberg Weekly Planet - Tampa 1/10/01

It's Greenwood and Culp who carry the film with their sharp portrayal of the Kennedy brothers. Culp's Bobby betrays a curious vulnerability, hidden beneath a fierce intellect and uncompromising morality, while Greenwood, recently saddled with a series of forgettable bad guy roles, brings a surprising willfulness to JFK. These aren't glamorous playboys or visionary idealists, but men struggling to prove their leadership amid unthinkable circumstances. Kennedy has the same fears and doubts here as the rest of the world, but refuses to lay down in the face of his enemies. Greenwood's focused performance, along with Culp's, strikes a very realistic chord and helps temper the film's occasional tendency towards hero worship.
-Rob Vaux, Flipside Movie Emporium 1/9/01

The performances by Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp as the Kennedy brothers were really amazing.
-Scott Chitwood, MovieHeadlines.net 1/9/01

Greenwood gives a subtle and genial performance, and his scenes with Stephen Culp as Robert Kennedy, who was the Attorney General at the time, are particularly good.
-eye Weekly

... the dead-on performances by Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp [are] infectious to behold ...
-Berge Garabedian, JoBlo's Movie Emporium 1/7/01

Greenwood's moving portrayal is the heart of the picture. The Canadian actor, whose credits range from the TV series "Nowhere Man" to the films "Double Jeopardy" and "Rules of Engagement", creates a charismatic JFK. His Kennedy is confident, but willing to listen and learn. He's not afraid to ask questions, nor to change his stance if he becomes aware of a better one....Most importantly, like the other principals in the story, Greenwood's president is a good man, and his humanity comes through to the audience.
-Barry Caine, Oakland Tribune 1/12/01

Despite Costner's star status, the 44-year-old Greenwood is the dignified scene-stealer on screen
--Bruce Kirkland, Toronto Sun 1/7/01

While Costner is billed as the top star of Thirteen Days, the real credit for pulling this movie off goes to both Bruce Greenwood as President John Kennedy and Steven Culp as his brother, Robert Kennedy. Both actors are relatively unknown (although Greenwood is making quite a name for himself lately with star turns in The Sweet Hereafter and Rules of Engagement) but they really convey the loyalty and strength that came to be trademarks of the Kennedy name. A major plus to Greenwood's performance as the president is that he isn't trying to mimic old file footage of JFK. Also, he wisely decided not to try and imitate the heavy Massachusetts accent (something Costner should take a cue from). Instead, Greenwood captures the spirit of a man who skated on very thin political ice to ensure a peaceful end to an extremely volatile situation.
-Ray Justavick, Moovees 1/7/01

INSIDE OSCAR: Best Supporting Actor:
Willem Dafoe is in the running........He'd be in stiff competition with Bruce Greenwood as JFK in Thirteen Days
-Access Hollywood 1/6/01

For those who’ve followed Greenwood’s career his astounding performance in "Thirteen Days" is no surprise -- and it's a wonder to behold. Greenwood doesn’t just act like Jack Kennedy, he becomes him -- in an untraditional way.
       Greenwood shuns exaggerated vocal impersonations or drastic physical changes. Rather, he adopts a dead-on New England accent and emulates Kennedy’s occasional limp, as an expression of the president’s physical and emotional exhaustion. These adjustments never engulf the character he’s creating. Greenwood subordinates these superficial aspects of Kennedy for a more substantial embracing of Kennedy’s spirit, making his transformation as complex as it is subtle. Watching "Thirteen Days," we see a real hero with real demons and real fears as he faces the impending annihilation of the world.
       Greenwood never lets his Kennedy descend into over-the-top pontification either. His speeches are controlled and calculated, gracefully allowing the audience to read Kennedy’s character through his expressive eyes rather than prompting us with his words.
       Greenwood’s performance is as perfect as they come and it goes beyond the simple telling of a story. He makes us remember why J.F.K. was a great president, why his affair with Marilyn Monroe is irrelevant to our memory of him and why his assassination wounded our nation so deeply.
       More importantly, Greenwood reminds us that, with true leadership, the president of the United States is a respected and important post.
       "Thirteen Days" is an excellent film in so many ways. The direction is strong, the screenplay is well crafted and the use of actual Cuban Missile Crisis footage is subtly interwoven. But Greenwood is indeed the standout. He makes us remember that we can have heroes in the White House and reveals John F. Kennedy at his best.
-Folio Weekly 1/01

As JFK, Greenwood gets past the familiar public portrayal of affably reigned leadership, realistically portraying someone torn between his own innate humanism and the advice of his more passive inner circle members....
-Brent Simon Entertainment Today 12/31/00

In this film, Bruce Greenwood steps up as one of the finest character actors we've got working, something fans of Atom Egoyan films have suspected for a while, delivering the single finest performance as JFK that I've seen. He nailed all the nuance of the role without ever once giving in to the familiar tricks. We all know by now about the constant pain that "Bad Back Jack" found himself in, and Greenwood definitely suggests that in the pinched body language, the way he's always trying to find a comfortable chair, but it's never something he brings to the surface, never something he says out loud. The accent he uses is accurate, but it's subtle. He doesn't turn it up and lay it on thick, the way so many actors have done in the past. Even Greenwood's appearance is accurate in ways that an exact makeup reconstruction couldn't manage. Greenwood is the same kind of guy as Kennedy, and they share the same sort of rugged good looks scrubbed clean, dressed up in respectability. Steven Culp is just as good in his role as Bobby Kennedy, and there's a great sense of brotherhood between them. You believe that these two have a history, that there are shared secrets between them. The way they communicate with silent looks, small gestures, the way Bobby lets himself be cast as "bad cop" time and time again, the way they draw together as a united front when under pressure ... these are the small touches that convince us of the relationship, and Culp and Greenwood are ideal together.
- Moriarty, Ain't It Cool News 12/31/00

... the heart of the film is the interplay between Bruce Greenwood as JFK and Steven Culp as Bobby Kennedy.
- Arkansas Democrat Gazette12/30/00

As JFK, Greenwood gets past the familiar public portrayal of affably reigned leadership, realistically portraying someone torn between his own innate humanism and the advice of his more passive inner circle members ...
-Brent Simon, Entertainment Today 12/30/00

Greenwood and Culp are excellent as the president and his brother.
- The Christian Science Monitor

As played with a piercing intellect by Bruce Greenwood, Kennedy is portrayed as an often short-tempered man with burdens to bear (the subtle acknowledgement of his chronic back pain is one of many effective shorthands in David Self's script). He's also the essence of a great leader, bringing the finest minds together, considering the greatest possible good and finally trusting his own reason and judgment. Greenwood's dynamic performance finds JFK's legacy not in some legend of golden boy heroism, but in the idea that he carried out his responsibilities with character.
-Scott Renshaw inconnect.com 12/29/00

Bruce Greenwood plays John Kennedy, and his performance is one of the best of the year.
-Jim Chastain II, Norman Transcript 12/29/00

[Philip D. Zelikow asks] "Do [the filmmakers] get the big personalities right? I think yes, particularly the Kennedy brothers." (JFK is played by Bruce Greenwood, RFK by Steven Culp.)
-Jared Hohlt, Slate 12/28/00

Set almost entirely in and around the Oval Office, the movie zeroes in on President John F. Kennedy (played by Bruce Greenwood, with a nice, unfussy indifference to looking and sounding perfect) ... and it is a credit to Greenwood and especially Culp's superb judgment and craft that they humanize the often idealized brothers so thoroughly here that even Costner's distracting drawl can't divert our attention from their fascinatingly thoughtful portrayals.
-Bob Strauss, Los Angeles Daily News 12/27/00

Canadian saves the world
For the first time in the anxious history of U.S.-Soviet Cold War relations, nuclear war not only seemed possible but actually imminent. As Kennedy, who is played in Thirteen Days magnetically by Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood, is heard to say: ``Monday we go to war.''............ In defining Kennedy's leadership by the way it stood firm against this chorus of intemperate martial enthusiasms, Thirteen Days not only reveals itself as a dyed-in-the-wool liberal movie - the kind that sees a good president as one who keeps the armed forces muzzled and on a short leash - it sets the stage for a truly stirring hero to emerge from the din............... Which is why Greenwood's subtly commanding Kennedy, and not Kevin Costner's more highly billed performance as Kennedy's loyal aide and backroom confidant, Kenny O'Donnell, is what anchors the movie and ultimately carries it....................Foregoing a straight impersonation, downplaying the Beantown accent and Pepsodent smile, Greenwood plays the president as a man distinguished by his ability to process the options available to him and judge accordingly............... Throughout this anxiously talky movie, Greenwood listens while those around him make noise, and it gives his performance the kind of Zen authority that brings to mind the steady-as-she-goes paternal calm of Henry Fonda..................Nor does the fact that much of the movie is frankly about the wrong guy: using Costner's college-buddy adviser as the viewpoint from which the crisis is observed, Self's script occasionally drifts from the movie's true heat source, which is unquestionably Greenwood's charismatically conscientious Jack Kennedy.
- Geoff Pevere, Toronto Star 12/26/00

As the two Kennedy brothers, Greenwood and Culp are simply magnificent. As John, Greenwood not only gets the vocal inflections right, but he is able to successfully channel JFK's mannerisms and demeanor.
-Anthony Leone, The Zone 12/25/00

...seen through the eyes of presidential aide Kenny O'Donnell (Costner), it is still a suspenseful tale. Well acted too, especially by Costner, and Greenwood as John F. Kennedy. The players don't particularly look like their historical models, but they make us feel their life-threatening pain and puzzlement.
--R.S. Time Magazine 12/25/00

Its cast, including Bruce Greenwood as the president and Steven Culp as his attorney general, not only look remarkably like the people they're playing, but they've all been made to understand that individual performances have to be subservient to the good of the whole.
-Kenneth Turan, The Los Angeles Times 12/25/00

Greenwood is hit-and-miss as JFK, depending on whether he's in profile or full face, but he captures the voice and manner perfectly.
-Jim Beckerman, The Record Online 12/25/00

The portrait of President Kennedy by Bruce Greenwood is a startling realization; he poses to look like him, right down to the carefully choreographed strands of chestnut and copper hair on his long-suffering head. Standing with his arms folded and looking as if he were ready for a sitting at the Franklin Mint, Mr. Greenwood opens himself up a scene at a time. He understands that he must provide more than just the striking physical resemblance or the accent that's become a cultural landmark. He starts as playful but wary. He's quick with a joke, and that mental agility later suggests his mind is always racing. Even when he's seated, he's not at rest.................. As his brother, Mr. Culp is more reflexive, the id the president won't allow himself to voice. They complete each other. Neither of these conceptions are particularly subtle: the Kennedys as American Landmark flashcards. Both actors still score decisively, though. They know they've got the future of 1960's Western civilization on their shoulders. And Mr. Greenwood is Canadian.
-Elvis Mitchell, The New York Times 12/25/00

Bruce Greenwood (as John Kennedy) and Steven Culp (as Bobby Kennedy) are utterly fantastic, and it's a shame that the odds are slim both will be nominated for Academy Awards.
-Brent Simon, Entertainment Today 12/25/00

[Costner] doesn't give the performance of the movie -- that would be Greenwood's elegantly underplayed JFK.... At the apex of this triangle is Greenwood's JFK, who's not afraid to appear diffident or irresolute in the eyes of the cocksure and the trigger-happy. Greenwood knows that just one wince when Jack lowers himself into a chair will announce his back pain more loudly than any bleat or bellow, and that the occasional ruminative glance will make his sparks of anger come off as incendiary. ... Greenwood is great at looking thoughtful, but even amid the Cuban missile crisis, the movie doesn't give him (or us) enough to back up that look.
-Michael Sragow, Salon.com 12/25/00

The way John F. Kennedy (Bruce Greenwood, The Sweet Hereafter) weighs every word before exercising his power as commander-in-chief, at least as portrayed here, is the stuff of which heroes are made.

Bruce Greenwood Decides When We Go To War! As commander-in-chief, it's Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood who saves the ship. It's doubtful that many will appreciate his performance, since he never goes for flashy, Oscar winning moments. He spends most of his time listening, his eyes reflecting thoughtful contemplation. It serves as a reminder of how few actors can truly pull off reactive moments, often in their hurry to shout, weep or otherwise emote............ Greenwood, while a handsome actor, doesn't look or sound very much like Kennedy, nor does he attempt the transformation. This is also a sensible decision which Costner should have paid attention to. There's nothing more distracting than an imitative performance of a public figure. He gives a low key, subtle and commanding performance as JFK.................. Any way you cut it, though, Kevin Costner will never, ever be in the same league as co-stars Dylan Baker, Steven Culp or Bruce Greenwood. -Jeremiah Kipp, Epinions.com12/24/00

Early critical response to the movie, directed by Australian Roger Donaldson, has been positive, with high marks going to little-known actor Bruce Greenwood, who plays John Kennedy, and Steven Culp, who plays Robert Kennedy.
- Sean Mitchell Los Angeles Daily News 12/24/00

Greenwood, in particular, manages to slide behind the obvious Kennedy caricature -- the ramrod back, the heavy-lidded, cool gaze and the literate Boston drawl -- to suggest his careful reserve of self-belief. There's a line he has, about how it's immoral not to trust your instincts, that sums it up astutely. Less obviously a sleek alpha male than Kennedy was, Greenwood actually makes the president seem more vulnerable, and likable, than history remembers him.
- Liam Lacey, Globe & Mail 12/22/00

Kevin Costner gets star billing in the film, but the movie belongs to veteran Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood (Double Jeopardy, The Sweet Hereafter), who doesn't so much imitate John Kennedy as inhabit him................. This isn't the womanizing, pill-popping president, but a shrewd and stubborn democrat who recognizes the dawn of a new age. Greenwood, who's deserved a breakout role for years, just moved up everyone's casting list.
- Now Magazine 12/21/00

Greenwood gives a subtle and genial performance, and his scenes with Stephen Culp as Robert Kennedy, who was the Attorney General at the time, are particularly good.
- eye Magazine 12/21/00

Greenwood gives a nuanced performance that may be the film's best work ...
-Andy Klein, New Times Los Angeles 12/21/00

A pair of lesser-known yet high-quality actors steal this picture, however. Canadian-born Bruce Greenwood and American Steven Culp play the Kennedys, John F. and Robert.....For both, this is a career-making turn. ... In Greenwood's case, he does not precisely have the look. But he does something even more impressive and maybe even more amazing. He embodies the spirit of J.F.K......The Cuban missile crisis might be interpreted as the event that made a world leader out of president Kennedy. In Thirteen Days, we actually see the subtle arc that J.F.K. takes from being just the flashy knight of the new Camelot into becoming a steely-eyed decision-maker who holds the world's fate in his hands and doesn't flinch. Greenwood captures the essence of that dynamic without spelling it out.
-Bruce Kirkland, Toronto Sun12/13/00

At the very least, the star [Costner] should be commended for taking a supporting role as a lesser-known figure-can you imagine if he had insisted on played JFK? You certainly won't be able to after watching Greenwood play the late president. Of all the thespians who have played Kennedy, none has done a finer job than the Canadian character actor. Greenwood forgoes the Mayor Quimby-like accent seen too often in Camelot-era movies (Tim Matheson's turn in the horrid TV miniseries Jackie Bouvier Kennedy Onassis being the most recent example). Instead we hear subtle New England inflections coming from under the furled brow of a politician caught between his own convictions as a hardened cold warrior and the no-win scenario of atomic conflict. His performance - apprehensive, nervous, thoughtful, manipulative - is closer to JFK the man than the secular-saint persona most people harbor, and Greenwood should be remembered when the Oscar nominations come out.
-Tor Thorsen, Reel Review12/23/00

Greenwood is extraordinary, creating a Kennedy who seems familiar without becoming a narrow impersonation.
-Dave Kehr, CITYSEARCH 12/23/00

But who really shines in this overall stellar cast are Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp (John and Robert Kennedy, respectively) as two brothers determined not to play into the hands of battle-hungry Pentagon leaders.
- E! Online 12/23/00

Bruce Greenwood's John Kennedy, on the other hand, is as close to perfect as any such portrayal might be. Costner is a character; Greenwood is the late president. Greenwood, who's best known for his work with director Atom Egoyan and for (yikes) "Double Jeopardy," doesn't look that much like JFK; he doesn't even sound that much like JFK. Yet, working with Kennedy's measured cadences, closeted emotions and cunning, he's more than convincing. Whatever he presents as Kennedy, we're willing to accept.
-John Anderson, Newsday 12/24/00

... well-played by Bruce Greenwood ...
-Lou Lumenick, New York Post 12/23/00

BEST OF 2000: THE YEAR THAT WAS GREAT PERFORMANCES:
BRUCE GREENWOOD:
Cinematic U.S. presidents tend to radiate a one-dimensional patriotic purity often missing from our own leaders of the free world. But this year, big-screen Commanders-in-Chief came complete with the same judgmental weaknesses and maniputlative strengths associated with authentic pols. Portraying John F. Kennedy in Thirteen Days, which chronicles 1962's Cuban Missile Crisis, Greenwood asks not what history can do for him, but what he can do for history. He deftly channels the surface Kennedy--mastering the Brahmin "err...ah"--but transcends imitation, capturing the angst of a man with the weight of the war of the world on his shoulders. Greenwood depicts a man battling for respect, public opinion, and his political future, often making very--dare we suggest--human errors along the way.
--J.W., Entertainment Weekly 12/22/00

BEST FILMS OF 2000:
#10: THIRTEEN DAYS
This vividly detailed, pulse-quickening reenactment of the Cuban Missile Crisis invites us to revel in the leadership of John F. Kennedy--not just the perfect-hair charisma, but his singular blend of Cold War muscle and new-era liberal humanism. As played, with masterly understatement, by the Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood, Kennedy has to outmaneuver not just the Russians but his own military advisers, and that hair-trigger double jeopardy means that he can sidestep nuclear disaster only by forging a new worldview. It's enough to make the 2000 presidential "crisis" look like a thumb-wrestling match between dwarves.
--Owen Glieberman, Entertainment Weekly 12/22/00

Bruce Greenwood's John Kennedy, on the other hand, is as close to perfect as any such portrayal might be. Costner is a character; Greenwood is the late president. Greenwood, who's best known for his work with director Atom Egoyan and for (yikes) "Double Jeopardy," doesn't look that much like JFK; he doesn't even sound that much like JFK. Yet, working with Kennedy's measured cadences, closeted emotions and cunning, he's more than convincing. Whatever he presents as Kennedy, we're willing to accept......On paper, it's Costner's film because of his star power and the fact he's executive producer; in actuality, it's Greenwood's.
--John Anderson, Newsday 12/22/00

Tensely directed by Roger Donaldson (who earlier collaborated with Costner on another political thriller, 1987's ''No Way Out''), ''Thirteen Days'' benefits from the brilliantly understated work of Bruce Greenwood (''The Sweet Hereafter'') and Steven Culp (''JAG'') as JFK and RFK, respectively
--Bruce Fretts, Entertainment Weekly 12/21/00

Despite the overemphasis on O'Donnell's role, this is an ensemble movie, and the actor who steals it is the one who should: Bruce Greenwood as JFK. Quite a surprise after his smarmy turns in Double Jeopardy and Rules of Engagement.
-Mike Clark, USA Today 12/21/00

But Greenwood (whose boar-bristle voice projected such virile menace in The Sweet Hereafter) is an ideal JFK, and the film movingly dramatizes his heroism as being (like his arrogance) the byproduct of an agile intelligence. Sheer verbal acumen not only enabled the president and his brother to craft shrewd responses to Soviet threats, but freed them from the entrenched thinking of their own advisers. However brief JFK's moment of glory, this film makes a persuasive case that he was, like FDR and Lincoln, above all a commander of language.
-F.X. Feeney, LA Weekly 12/21/00

Bruce Greenwood makes a superb JFK. He avoids mere imitation, capturing through modest physical gestures and his commanding presence the essence of the president without exaggeration. (He gets the cadences of the voice exactly right, too, not coming close to caricature as the otherwise sound William Devane did in "The Missiles of October.") ... What it lacks in cinematic flair it makes up for in the sincerity of its approach and the remarkable performances of Greenwood and Culp.
-Frank Swietek, One Guy's Opinion 12/21/00

Bruce Greenwood bears little resemblance to JFK, but he gets the accent right and exudes a quiet, presidential strength.
-Christy Lemire, AP Entertainment Writer 12/19/00

... (Bruce Greenwood, wondrously capturing the man's polished persona and tortured humanity) ... Greenwood seemed well on his way of becoming the next Gary Oldman, a wonderful actor who pimps out his talents to utter schlock (Double Jeopardy, Rules of Engagement) that's far beneath him. But he makes up for those turkeys with a measured, intelligent portrayal that never slides into caricature or impersonation. He looks passable enough as JFK, but what he brings to the role is what counts, and watching the film, you really can't imagine anyone as quietly dignified embodying him. Culp is a major find as Robert, and for someone whose most notable credit is as Friend #2 in Nurse Betty, that's quite something. His resemblance is also notable, but the hangdog ardor and sweetly resigned admiration for Costner and Greenwood that he exhibits is a joy to watch. He's no pushover, mind you, but Culp's heartfelt, expert performance practically bubbles over with possibility. (One scene where, in the midst of a high-powered meeting, Culp quietly asks Costner how he's doing is one example of the movie's attention to human details. Most movies wouldn't have even bothered. This one does.) -Jason Clark, Matinee Magazine 12/19/00

Kevin Costner is a smart co-producer. He was smart enough, anyway, not to cast himself as either John or Robert Kennedy in "Thirteen Days," the forthcoming movie chronicling the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Those roles went, respectively, to Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp. They're both very good-and quite likely would have carried this absorbing, scrupulously assembled historical thriller on their own.
--Gene Seymour, Newsday 12/17/00

But the film's ultimate impact is rooted in the mind and spirit of one man. His name is John F. Kennedy, and, as portrayed - wonderfully - by the Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood, he seems to loom up out of the past, with both the stature of legend and the present tense cut and sweat of humanity, to dwarf the petty, self serving ersatz outrage of Al Gore and George W. Bush........ A number of previous actors, of course, have had a go at JFK, but most of them have been like William Devane in ''The Missiles of October'' -- overplaying the New England accent, reciting every line as if they were seated in the Oval Office in front of a TelePrompTer, with that ''Mawy... fellow... Americans'' pomp. Greenwood, by contrast, has a slightly anonymous, blank slate quality. He cuts down on the dry Boston vowels, and he captures how the authoritative essence of JFK's charisma grew out of a virile tension between what he did and didn't express........Outfitted in a regal helmet of swept hair with sculpted bow lips and eyes that gleam like polished stones (they seem to be staring right through whomever he's talking to), Greenwood is hardly a dead ringer for Kennedy, but he looks just enough like him to allow the audience to relax into the illusion and to focus less on physiognomy than on the soothing, quick-snap command of his voice, which the actor nails with greater subtlety than anyone before him, and on the war of options jostling around inside his head.
--Owen Gleiberman Entertainment Weekly 12/15/00

JFK and Bobby Kennedy Oscar Nominees?
Roger Donaldson’s thriller, Thirteen Days, about the Cuban missile crisis, has two things going for it - Bruce Greenwood as President John F. Kennedy and Steven Culp as Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. I am going to urge Academy and Golden Globe voters to see these performances and nominate both of them -- Greenwood in the best actor category and Culp for best supporting actor.......Unfortunately, [Costner] is a leading man, which makes his role confusing in the overall scheme of things. Luckily, Greenwood is so disarmingly superior that he manages to keep drawing the movie back to himself and to Culp (not related to Robert Culp), who is also outstanding. Greenwood was the star of Atom Egoyan’s movies Exotica and The Sweet Hereafter, and last year did a great job as Ashley Judd’s husband in Double Jeopardy. He must be about 40, but he’s about to become an overnight sensation. Bravo! I just hope the movie’s more nonsensical elements don’t detract from these two guys.
--Roger Friedman Fox 411 12/14/00

The cast, a true ensemble, is led, surprisingly, by Bruce Greenwood as JFK and not by Kevin Costner......The ensemble cast places Greenwood as the first among equals with like weight given to all the principle players. Greenwood does not play act at being a caricature of JFK, foregoing the typical Kennedy Boston accent. Instead, he plays the man as a powerful figure who has to maintain the dignity of the office, directing his subordinates but giving them the latitude to make clear all of his options...... Bruce Greenwood beautifully evokes JFK. Without really looking or sounding like him, Greenwood gets the body language, the mannerisms, the fiery intelligence and the uncertainty of the man. Steven Culp, looking and sounding quite a bit like RFK, absolutely works off of Greenwood to create a portrait of the two brothers
--Laura Clifford and Robin Clifford, Reeling Reviews 12/13/00

Kennedy's wit is one of the most beloved memories of his character and Greenwood, as well as Costner and Culp, find many moments to make these characters rounded and full-bodied by portraying them as real people, not icons. This is perhaps the most human representation of the Kennedy brothers ever to be brought forth in the cinema.
--FileThirteen.com 12/13/00

More importantly, as the main character, Greenwood's addition to the cast of Thirteen Days certainly adds to the overall effect of the film. Greenwood single-handedly overcomes monotonous and overdone attempts at portraying the Kennedy legend......His performance flies far beyond all the previous attempts recreating one of the nation's most mysterious political figures. Greenwood's charm and close appearance to the real J.F.K. are surprisingly believable.
-Kristin Saunders, The University News, Saint Louis University 12/12/00

Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp play two of the most imitated political figures in US history, and they pull it off with flying colors. Greenwood gives a strong, understated performance as Jack Kennedy, refusing to fall into imitation and playing him as a real person torn between opposing views (and incidentally, he does the smart thing by practically avoiding the Kennedy accent).
-Scott A. Mantz, Scott's New Movie Reviews December 2000

Greenwood's JFK and Steven Culp's Robert Kennedy have the appropriate body language, vocal inflections, and coiffures ...
- J. Hoberman, The Village Voice December 2000

Bruce Greenwood who plays Jack Kennedy gives a great performance as well but is too often reserved.
-Dave Gunn Dark Horizons 12/6/00

The BEST thing about the film is Bruce Greenwood, who plays JFK. He makes a VERY smart decision. Rather than trying to imitate a famous historical figure, he takes the role and makes it his own. There's no Boston accent, and Greenwood is top-notch in the role.
-Matt, Dark Horizons 12/6/00

Watching Bruce Greenwood, embody the personage and weight of Kennedy in this situation.. you realize, had the election gone any other way--Had Richard Nixon (lets bomb Cambodia) been there--things might not be here anymore......At the same time, Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp as John and Bobby Kennedy avoid the accent game as both the real fellas' voices are such recognizable and memorable pentameters and tones that we would instantly be critical of them......I love Greenwood and Culp as the Kennedy Brothers here. Like Hopkins' Nixon, they possessed the characters they played through impressionistic manners. The hair is there, the gestures, a look in the eye, a quarter turn this way and that.
--Harry Knowles Ain't It Cool News 12/6/00

Greenwood and Culp handle their Bostonian accents wonderfully;
-Victoria Alexander, Films in Review 12/5/00

Most pleasing is the sense of familiarity and artistic distance found in the sterling work of Bruce Greenwood as the president, and Steven Culp as his younger brother and Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. ... If Costner's overbaked Boston accent takes a few scenes to get comfortable with, Greenwood's diverging from JFK's well-known looks and style of speaking are bold moves that pay off well. -David Hunter, The Hollywood Reporter 12/5/00

Costner's new movie, Thirteen Days, by the way, is getting some good advance word. Ironically, the Oscar buzz I've picked up is not for Kevin, but for co-star Bruce Greenwood, who plays Robert F. Kennedy in this Cuban Missile Crisis drama. Greenwood is the fine actor who starred in Atom Egoyan's The Sweet Hereafter and Exotica. Last year he also toiled in Double Jeopardy as Ashley Judd's husband. If this is his year, I think a lot of people in the press will get behind him. It's always nice to support an overnight sensation who's been working in the business for 15 years.
--Roger Friedman, Fox Entertainment News 12/4/00

Oscar Gets Down for The Final Count
"Thirteen Days," a dramatization of the Cuban Missile Crisis, stars Bruce Greenwood as JFK and Kevin Costner as White House aide Kenneth O'Donnell, and New Line apparently thinks that the relative paucity of competition makes that movie's chances even stronger. But for whom? Will Greenwood, who's terrific, suffer because Costner's the ostensible star? Such Solomonic decisions can only be decided by the Golden Globes.
--John Anderson, Newsday 12/3/00

Given the memorable looks and distinctive vocal qualities of JFK and RFK, portraying them is always a dicey enterprise, but Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp, respectively, pull it off. Lankier and a bit more taciturn than one remembers the president, Greenwood folds his arms a lot and affects other gestures with his hands and wrists. But he manages to catch an intelligence and thoughtfulness vital to a successful impersonation of the young chief executive, and he gains in authority just as the character does.
--Todd McCarthy, Variety 12/1/00

Oscar Buzz: BEST ACTOR: Kevin Costner may have hopes for "Thirteen Days,'' but he's upstaged by co-star Bruce Greenwood as President Kennedy.
--David Germaine, AP News 11/30/00

His [Costner's] name might be on the marquee but his co-stars Bruce Greenwood (President Kennedy) and Steven Culp (Robert Kennedy) clearly overshadow him. Both of these actors completely embody their characters. They create a tribute to the brothers that only inflames their already enormous legend. It paints the Kennedys in a glowing light, making them out to be the saviors of our land. You believe these are the real guys and understand why they were such great and charismatic leaders.
-- cinescape.com 11/00

Bruce Greenwood plays JFK, and I couldn't place him as the bad guy from "Double Jeopardy." Good thing, too. A guy would have enough trouble trying to emulate Jack without being dragged down by such a depressingly thin role as his "Jeopardy" villain. As it was, I was completely convinced that I was watching Kennedy. I mean, no, he didn't look like Kennedy when I looked right at him, but when I saw him in the context of a White House filled with decision makers, when I saw him out the corner of my eye, he made his presence known. That's such a cool thing for an actor to pull off.
--Ain't It Cool News 11/22/00

Though seen through the eyes of Kenneth P. O'Donnell, chief political aide to JFK, Thirteen Days is a far more revealing look at the two Kennedy brothers, their close, dependant relationship and their own growth and maturity as they are forced to confront the real danger of nuclear war. As JFK and Bobby Kennedy respectively, Bruce Greenwood and Steven Culp give commanding performances, capturing their characters' strengths, flaws and deep humanity, to sublime perfection. They are not impersonators, but magnificently explore who they were and what they must have gone through. Costner finally drifts away from movie icon to actor and delivers a powerful performance.
--Paul Fischer, Dark Horizons 11/22/00

The Oscar Hopefuls: *NEW LINE: ....But "Thirteen Days" could prove lucky for star Kevin Costner or supporting actor Bruce Greenwood.
--Dave Karger, Entertainment Weekly 11/17/00

Bruce Greenwood's truly spooky JFK performance is front and center here
Ain't It Cool News Early Report 9/00