J. Edgar - 3 stars out of 10

J. Edgar - 3 stars out of 10

Good actors, bad make-up.  Clint Eastwood is generally one of my favorite directors but this film simply missed its mark.  The unlimited potential of J. Edgar Hoover's creation of the FBI is lost in a script whose timeline is too disjointed by a script that is inherently boring.  The previews for this film made it an obvious candidate for several Oscars; however, it did not earn a single nomination in spite of its list of big-name actors and one of the hottest directors in Hollywood.  Leonardo DiCaprio has established himself as one of the best actors of a generation and yet, this script does not afford him a single chance to show his mastery of emotional acting.  Naomi Watts is one of my favorite actresses but she's just sort of there.  Throw in Dame Judy Dench, Josh Lucas, and Armie Hammer for some more solid acting, but the entire thing is just so boring.  There was far too little emphasis on the Lindbergh kidnapping and far too much emphasis on Hoover's debated homosexuality.  "J. Edgar" tells an interesting piece of history but does so in a way that its 2+ hours become progressively more painful from start to finish.  Oh yeah, and the "old people make-up" is nearly laughable.