(2000 feature film)
Perhaps Bruce Greenwood 's most significant casting coups was his co-starring role as President John F. Kennedy in this highly anticipated film chronicling 1962's Cuban Missile Crisis and the tense 13 days it took to resolve the standoff between the U.S. and Cuba. The three major players in this true-to-life thriller were President Kennedy, his brother Robert and Chief of Staff Kenny O'Donnell, who fought a cat-and-mouse game with Russia to avoid World War III. Produced by and starring Kevin Costner as O'Donnell, the docu-drama was directed by Roger Donaldson (No Way Out, Cadillac Man, Species) from a taut, highly regarded script by David Self with Steven Culp effectively co-starring as Robert Kennedy. A platform release in NY and LA on December 25, 2000 (to qualify for awards), was followed with a general release on January 12, 2001, 18 years after the actual events took place.
The critical praise for Greenwood's JFK was widely accepted and made a meaningful impact on his career, leading to a Golden Satellite Award and lots of Oscar predictions, including a prominent spread in Variety. It still represents a significant triumph for the actor, who gave more interviews for this one project than for any other event to date. Although the movie received very good reviews overall, it was not quite the box office success expected, which probably contributed to the film's slight by the Academy, where Greenwood was considered its major hope.
A video and DVD were released with much fanfare in the summer of 2001 with lots of behind-the-scenes footage, several deleted scenes and some primary source material on The Cuban Missile Crisis itself. Both formats are still readily available.
Beacon Films for New Line Cinema / copyright 2000.
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