An American Affair (2008) User Reviews

An interesting take on a real life story...

[Onthethreshold · 6/10 · 9 October 2010]

To me this film is essentially your average made-for-TV production that isn't really memorable in one way or another. I'm not going to go into the acting, direction or overall plausibility of the storyline as other reviewers have except to say that this movie is basically a telling of the real life relationship between President John F. Kennedy and a Washington socialite named Mary Pinchot Meyer.

Meyer had been introduced to Kennedy some years back through various acquaintances, namely Ben Bradlee of the Washington Post fame who at that time was a reporter for Newsweek magazine and Bradlee was in fact married to Mary's sister, Tony. Mary Meyer had in fact been married to a CIA operative named Cord Meyer who as portrayed in this movie was once the idealistic and now cynical and alcoholic ex-husband still looking for a chance to reunite with his wife. Mary was also indeed an exceptionally attractive woman in her day and was artistic as depicted in this film by Gretchen Mol's character. The existence of a diary detailing the nature of the relationship with Kennedy was very much real in 1963-1964 for Mary Meyer and upon her death nearly a year after Kennedy was assassinated, CIA operatives were intent on retrieving the diary for the potentially explosive information it contained not only about the affair but also on Agency operations with a view to the idea that JFK shared secrets with Meyer that may have ultimately resulted in his assassination.

The plot of 'An American Affair' does indeed follow this real-life story nearly to the letter and the mystery surrounding Mary Meyer's death lingers today for those that believed she knew much more and indeed let on she knew who might have been responsible for the President's death. That is very much implied in this movie, but I can't help but think this could've been such a great film with a better script. It truly has all the ingredients of being a love story, political thriller and mystery wrapped up in one.

6 out of 10.

coming-of-age tale meets JFK

[Buddy-51 · 7/10 · 25 September 2009]

Written by Alex Metcalf and directed by William Olsson, "An American Affair" at least earns points for originality. For what starts out as a fairly conventional coming-of-age tale set in 1963 Washington D.C. suddenly turns into a piece of historical fiction when the obligatory older woman 13-year-old Adam Stafford (Cameron Bright) falls madly in love with turns out to be none other than the mistress of President John F. Kennedy himself. Thus, not only is Adam introduced to the wonderful world of raging hormones but to the sociopolitical issues of the day as well.

Adam is the son of two journalists who have no clue their child has been peeping into the home across the way, enjoying a full-court view of Catherine Caswell (nicely played by Gretchen Mol), a glamorous divorcée and ex-CIA agent guaranteed to get any healthy young American lad's juices flowing. When Adam introduces himself to her, Catherine hires him on as a gardener, a setup that gives the youngster plenty of opportunity to not only make his move on this prospective conquest but, thanks to her uniquely complicated social life, to have a special behind-the-scenes glimpse into a bit of juicy, albeit undocumented, political history.

"An American Affair" throws so many disparate elements into the mix - May/December romance (or maybe more like February/August), lurid political melodrama, adolescent wish-fulfillment, cloak-and-dagger espionage, conspiracy-theory speculation - that it can't help but generate a certain fascination, even when the story itself is not all that convincing or the passion for the subject not everything it could be (this applies mainly to the first half).

All the "Summer of '42" stuff is, ultimately, far less compelling than the political details of the period, steeped as they are in Kennedy-era glamour and paranoia, with larger-than-life figures acting out a torrid little soap opera in the foreground, while shadowy figures (mainly Cubans and CIA agents) skulk around in the background. The scenes surrounding the assassination are treated with subtlety and restraint, making them all the more heartbreaking and poignant for those in the audience who lived through the experience. In fact, the whole last half hour of the film achieves a haunting sadness that finally penetrates to the very marrow of one's bones.

The movie certainly won't solve the puzzle as to "Who killed JFK?," but it has some fun trying to piece it all together.

Good sleeper film

[frncsbrennan · 7/10 · 9 September 2010]

Adam is a 13 year old boy who has just discovered his sexuality. He is not so popular at school and takes a few beatings, but he at least has a prospective girlfriend; that is, until one night while perusing a Playboy magazine in his room he sees the real thing from his window, a beautiful woman semi-naked, right across the street. From that point, Adam is obsessed with this woman, Catherine. Most women would have sent him on his way for his own good, but Catherine is confused and conflicted, and she is a painter, a bohemian artist who is just ending an affair with JFK, and her ex-husband works for the CIA. She is flattered by his interest and boldness, and soon begins to really care about him. The JFK/CIA angle in this film is the weakest part of this movie; it just seems too far fetched. This film would have been just fine without that subplot. The interaction between an older woman who is trying to find herself, and the infatuation of a young boy with her made for some real interest. The ending of this movie is very touching.

A young boy yearns forbidden fruit.

[michaelRokeefe · 6/10 · 26 August 2009]

The scene is 1963 Washington D.C.; the Cuban Missile Crisis is barely old news, Americans still fear the attitudes of the Russians, and the John F. Kennedy administration is still young. The Cold War is still frigid and the dreams of Camelot still in bloom. Thirteen-year-old Adam Stafford(Cameron Bright)endures the plight of bullies, nuns and girls at his Catholic school. His life finds a purpose when he spies on the naked body of his new neighbor across the street. She's blond, she's beautiful and young Adam is overcome with curiosity. Catherine Caswell(Gretchen Mol)is a divorcée, an artist and a woman with a past. Young Adam clicks pictures from his bedroom window and one night makes a startling discovery...Catherine is having a relationship with JFK. Against his parent's wishes, Adam and Catherine nurture a friendship and before long find themselves in a whirling vortex of confusion and mystery leading to the assassination of the nation's youngest President.

Captivating intrigue. Witty and poignant. Pasionate awaking. Also in the cast: James Rebhorn, Mark Pellegrino, Perrey Reeves and Noah Wyle. Do yourself a favor and get involved.

Set in 1963, Washington D.C., right before Kennedy was killed.

[TxMike · 7 August 2009]

In 1963 I was a senior in high school. Later in 1963 I was a freshman in college. It was there, on my way to or from the cafeteria that I learned our President was shot.

This movie, set in that time, brings back good memories for me, not that things were necessarily great in 1963, but because none of us will ever see 1963 again, time passes so quickly.

In this fictitious account Gretchen Mol is Catherine Caswell, 30-something and divorced from her CIA husband. Catherine knows John Kennedy, she really "knows" him, and at times he comes to visit her during the night.

Cameron Bright, about 15 during filming, is teen Adam Stafford, going through the raging hormone stage. Adam's bedroom window happens to be right across from Catherine's windows, and at night he often catches a glimpse of her. One night after quite a nice, partially nude glimpse, he takes to being very nosy. As in intercepting her mail, steaming it open, to find out more about this mysterious woman who seems to delight in that she can turn on a teenager.

All this leads to Adam getting a job taking care of Catherine's yard, with a fringe benefit of becoming her friend. Overall the movie is more about Adam's coming of age (although he never gets close to sleeping with Catherine) than of Catherine's alleged affair with the President. In addition there is a subplot to get and destroy her diary which certainly would have sensitive matter in it.

Good movie, better than the IMDb rating would indicate, in my judgement. Mol is an under-appreciated actress, beautiful and always delivers a memorable performance.

Okay coming of age tale

[dbborroughs · 6/10 · 2 August 2009]

13 year old boy strikes up a relationship with a blond divorce artist who is a friend of JFK. As he tries to survive life in Catholic school she tries to survive before her past and connection to the president come back to haunt her. Okay coming of age film is the sort of thing that has too much on its mind. The provocative art for the film has Gretchen Mol semi nude, looking like Marilyn Monroe and seems to portend a film different then the coming of age drama that is on the screen. Perhaps had I known that this was more of a coming of age Tale I might have liked it more than I did. As it is its an okay film about two people coming together to form a friendship. Worth a shot if you run across it.

Another Kennedy assassination conspiracy movie?

[CCsito · 5/10 · 21 September 2009]

The movie centers on a woman (Gretchen Mol) who has ties to President Kennedy and who is suspected of harboring state sensitive secrets. The Cuban missile crisis becomes the focal point of the movie and her ex-husband and godfather of her child are CIA operatives. Against this backdrop, they inject an early puberty teen who spies on the woman who is his neighbor. The teen tries to become close to his neighbor by working on her garden. The movie was filmed in the Georgetown neighborhood in Washington DC. The locale where the priest is shoved down the steps in Georgetown for the Exorcist movie also is shown in this movie. The movie has a bit of profanity, nudity, and sexuality for the R rating.

I was raised in Washington DC and was very young when President Kennedy was assassinated. I attended inner city schools in Washington. This movie appears to have a somewhat anti-parochial school message on the film on how the teen encounters bullying on the school grounds and its depiction of the nuns who teach at the school. I attended an inner city public school and it was not as rough as it was shown for a parochial school back in the 1960s in this movie.

The movie leaves one with the message that a conspiracy was behind the Kennedy Assassination and that anyone connected to him were on a "hit list". Strangely, the movie might have even carried the plot if you deleted the teen character. The movie appeared to waffle between being a "coming of age" movie and a Kennedy conspiracy movie.

Have Your Cake and Eat it Too

[ken-bld · 8/10 · 23 August 2009]

Some of the reviewers here obviously have never heard of, or read a book of, historical fiction. This movie did not begin with "True Story". Hence why expect it to be? Indeed, if a film about historical events was 100% accurate it would be so boring we'd then complain about that.

Gretchen Mol did a superb job as usual. I first saw her in "Forever Mine". If she gets the right part she always delivers. The part of the young man was also well done. It is difficult to give much info without spoiling the plot. It has drama, romance and tragedy. All well done; the components of good movies. So watch it for yourself. And don't try to make historical comparisons as you do. That's not what this movie is about.

Most of the bad reviews here come from those who did not see the typical Hollywood template film they expected. There are no Quentin Tarantino type influences here. It's not the typical American type template that has won the US only 5 Palm D Ors in drama at Cannes in the last 25 years even though we've put out tens of thousands of films! Yes if you expect the usual steamy sex, filthy talk, things blowing up, chase scenes, gun battles and bloody gore-filled murder scenes you will be disappointed.

Sadly, there are few American made movies worth the time or expense at a cinema these days but this is one of them. You get to have your cake and eat it too.

COA + CIA + Mol = Muddle

[paulwl · 5/10 · 15 August 2009]

COA=Coming of Age. It's a set and somewhat stilted genre by now, and _An American Affair_ does little to change that. Young Adam Stafford is isolated in the all-too-predictable World He Never Made: parochial school, iconic period parents cloaked in gray clothes and rote emotions, and females constantly pushing him away for no clear reason. We get the sense Adam's supposed to be Somehow Special - maybe because he's an only child, maybe because he's the big-eyed, callow, Pure Boy - but he's really just inert, a force to be acted upon by the grown-up world.

Gretchen Mol's Catherine is really the only flame of real humanity in the film, the only one not acting out a role of someone acting out a role. The actor who brought Betty Page back to life a few years ago had matured fascinatingly since her days as a pretty bauble. Now we see her without the black wig and fetish gear, and she's a real presence. Her role as Sexy Bourgeoise Bohemienne is contrived - cool jazz, drugs, and a patently silly finger-paint ballet with Adam - but she has a genuine emotional vulnerability that most of the film lacks.

The subplot of neighbor Catherine's involvement with Jack Kennedy - who apparently will talk to the CIA only through her - is not well integrated. As a result, it feels obligatory, as if it's there to beef up the COA story (and perhaps add a little commercial zing). It does provide a counter-irritant to Catherine's sensuality in Lucien and Catherine's ex Graham, the Agency men easily reduced to masculine role-icons. Lucien is so buttoned up he seems almost deliberately awkward, and Graham taking what we're supposed to believe are the only outlets from his masculine role - drinking and rage towards Catherine.

Director Olsson is, of course, working with archetypes - Cold War Washington folk - but he never lets them get beyond their icon status. Particularly telling is his handling of the JFK assassination moment - the parochial school kids left to stand pointlessly in line as all the sisters gather at the television. The news is spread only by Adam, the special boy, who whispers to the pupils - and a silent overhead shot as they scatter like birds in a Paris park. Again, a dance of roles and distance, too stylized by half.

Here's a hint, Mr. Olsson: Camelot wasn't so long ago that you have to play it as somber as a medieval allegory. (What does it say that _The Tudors_ had more men in crew cuts than your vision of 1963?) People - CIA men maybe excepted - did approach one another as people, and European directors often miss that American ease. Ironically, that same ease was what made John Fitzgerald Kennedy so irresistible - not just to his many feminine liaisons, but to his country and the world.

Captivating ... sexy ... moody ... original ... superbly made film with truly memorable performances

[LeonardOsborneKael · 10/10 · 27 February 2009]

These days it's rare to come across a finely crafted film that plays every character -- and literally every moment of every scene -- with an uncompromising integrity. Instead of the usual attempt to make a marketable product that pulls the right demographic -- or pushes everyone's buttons -- or simply puts as many of the masses into the seats as possible, writer Alex Metcalf and director William Olsson follow their very resonant characters into the story generated quite naturally by these delicately entangled lives. Yes, there are elements of "coming of age", of "cloak and dagger", of "erotic thriller", etc. -- but it isn't really any of those. Like all really outstanding motion pictures, this film belongs to itself -- is its own category.

Setting fictional characters into a piece of well-known history is in itself a major film-making challenge and not without its pitfalls. But there isn't a single false step here as Olsson juggles fact and fiction with seamless precision, managing to keep all the balls in the air. "An American Affair' is a quiet movie ... taking its time ... allowing you savor every sweet and sour moment. The music is minimal -- yet superbly appropriate and authentic to period. Never showy, the thoughtful camera work serves the characters and content very, very well.

The performances are uniformly excellent -- with Gretchen Mol turning in a truly memorable tour-de-force portrayal of this complex, conflicted young woman. The erotic scenes are never overplayed -- they're tangible -- real. This is genuine eroticism -- not the showbiz kind. She plays the total woman at all times and yet retains that elusive air ... a lingering mystique. Can we -- can anyone -- really know her? We savor each tiny revelation that emerges through her many moods -- playful, seductive, cynical, childlike, creative, materialistic, conscientious, free-spirited, controlling, generous, vulnerable, self-serving. Mol plays every resonant note to absolute perfection and it's the key to making this film so unforgettable.

This is the kind of movie that stays with you long after the lights come up. Hard to believe it's Olsson's first feature length film -- and it's made in the English language for North America's convenience! We have a lot to look forward to from this wonderful new addition to the world's motion picture auteurs.

Unconvincing and unrealistic.

[JungleBunnyBastard · 3/10 · 12 August 2009]

Apart from how boring this was, it was also historically inaccurate (apart from Kennedy's assassination), but even still, setting this during that time frame is somewhat distracting.

The main plot is generic, recycled and unrealistic to say the least. What are the chances of this kid actually coming across all the events that happen in this story? Not bloody likely.

Still, though, there were a couple good scenes (the ending was surprisingly good), but just not enough to save a mediocre film. Mediocre, but watchable at least. I'd be more willing to give this a three and a half, but unfortunately I have to pick either three or four here on IMDb...so I'm leaning more towards a three.

Not a movie about Kennedy

[dtdenver-987-925546 · 2/10 · 30 December 2017]

It's my own fault - I suppose I should have read the description better when I picked this out. Kennedy - pretty girl - CIA - suspense. No. It's a pubescent boy - sweaty and horny. I think the appeal of "coming of age" movies about teenage boys must be limited to the grown up teenage boys who make them. Seriously - who wants to watch a movie about a boy peeping at his neighbor and masturbating in the bathroom? What does that have to do with Kennedy and the pretty girl and the CIA?

yes 10 stars because it is good **********

[cekadah · 10/10 · 23 February 2013]

before writing this review i read some of the lessor reviews. i'm wondering what they saw. and i wish other reviewers would stick to their thoughts on a movie and NOT just give another plot summary with their opinion tacked on at the end.

in my opinion this movie is a captivating story of a woman (caswell) dealing with the loss of her child and failed marriage. she sees in (adam) a shadowy wish of what her son could be. but reality in her personal life takes control of her very existence. her being a mistress to the president is secondary to her involvement with adam.

adam has stumbled upon his own sexual desires and his school life is a jumbled mess because he is thrown into a situation where he must grow up fast; in contrast to the 'child like peers' he must associate with.

this movie is a wonderful story told in a suspenseful and at times frightening quality. the director and actors did a super job and 10 stars isn't enough to praise it!

Gretchen Mol could have made out with Perrey Reeves and this movie still wouldn't have been any good

[MBunge · 4/10 · 27 August 2010]

This film tries to combine a coming-of-age story with the shadowy intrigue of the end of the Kennedy Administration. The result is a soporific and laughably dated saga that feels more like the childhood history of a serial killer.

Adam Stafford (Cameron Bright) is a 13 year old boy living in Washington D.C. in 1963. One night while his parents (Noah Wyle and Perry Reeves) are out, Adam sees the woman across the street through her window. He catches a flash of boob from her open robe and, as sure as the Sun rises, he's at her place the next day offering to do chores. Her name is Catherine Caswell (Gretchen Mol) and she is one of JFK's paramours, something which is well known by Adam's parents and the rest of D.C. society. That's the setup.

The rest of the movie is an erratic and uneven mix of Catherine as a woman of the world opening Adam's eyes to life and Catherine as the cornerstone of efforts by the CIA to get President Kennedy to continue to go after Fidel Castro in the wake of the Bay of Pigs. There's also Adam swapping spit with a girl from his Catholic school, a well-acted but terribly clichéd CIA mastermind, another CIA guy who turns out to be Catherine's ex-husband and too many unnecessary and unexplained references to Catherine's dead son.

Gretchen Mol does some nice work, giving Catherine just the right balance of zest for life and world weariness. James Rebhorn is also realistically sinister as the CIA baddie, though the role is written with just a little more subtlety than Darth Vader. That and a couple of looks at Mol's breasts are about the only good things in An American Affair.

As for the bad, well…it's kind of unfair to do it, but the list has to begin with the inanimate acting of Cameron Bright. He's a young actor and you can't know what sort of instruction he received from director William Sten Olssen, but Bright is just horrendous. He wanders through 95% of the film with the same blank look on his face and the only time Adam displays any personality at all, it's an appallingly self-centered and slightly creepy one. Unless Olssen said to Bright "I want you to play Adam Stafford like he was an autistic sociopath", this is a truly terrible performance. If there'd been a scene in the movie where Adam vivisected the neighborhood cats, it wouldn't have been at all out of place.

An American Affair also intimates that it was the CIA and anti-Castro Cubans who were behind the Kennedy assassination, which might have been somewhat provocative or thought provoking in 1989. In 2009, however, such paranoid theorizing barely qualifies as quaint. When the Kennedy stuff completely takes over the last 20 minutes of the story, it's the same thing as listening to a book report from a not terribly bright 4th grader; a shallow and uninspired recitation of something you already know.

In addition, An American Affair features a soundtrack that would be a great cure for insomnia, which fits in with the comprehensively listless and joyless tone and style of the entire production. Director Olssen and writer Alex Metcalf take a young boy's sexual and emotional awakening, the assassination of a U.S. President, secret conspiracies and a woman who loses everything she's ever had or wanted and turn it into a flavorless cinematic oatmeal. I've seen Geico commercials that touched me more deeply than this movie. I've sat through pledge breaks on Iowa Public Television that were more dynamic and watching my clothes spin in a laundromat washing machine did more to hold my interest.

This film fails to recreate a sense of the 1960s or to revive memories of your own adolescent struggles. It has no humor, no drama and no wit. Even if Gretchen Mol were stark naked through the entire movie, a man could be stranded alone for 15 years on a desert island and still not enjoy watching An American Affair.

Fiction...or maybe .....

[nws9091 · 8/10 · 13 December 2009]

This movie is especially enjoyable if you've ever taken the time to explore several Historic and Real D.C. insiders from the era. Take a look at a few names. Mary Pinchot Meyer. James Angleton. Cord Meyer. Kathryn Graham (perhaps a mere coincidence that the two main characters are Catherine and Graham). Ben Bradlee. When you explore all these real-life characters and compare to the screenplay a clearer picture develops regarding the muddled plot lines described in other reviews. The young boy only serves as a vehicle to expose the "facts" in an eye-witness fashion. The movie works better when viewed as an interpretation of facts on record. Artistic license many times, but a few undeniable facts find their way into the story as well. Enjoy this movie. It makes you think.

Liberals at it again

[thomascapital · 1/10 · 7 December 2009]

OMG! The CIA whacked Jack! Come back to reality. The movie has great actors (Noah Wyle, James Rebhorn, Gretchen Mol, among others); however, the Libtards in Hollywood simply cannot tell a story without their crazed anti-American, Anti-CIA, anti-whatever being the core of the story.

JFK was murdered by Oswald (with perhaps the aid of Sam Giancana). Bobby Kennedy was a ruthless and LAWLESS man. JFK had many flaws but was a great leader surrounded by lousy advisers! The movie is still worth watching as every 14 year old boy's fantasy comes to life and love is not what it is all cracked up to be! Had Jack lived he most likely would NOT have been re-elected as Goldwater was way ahead in the polls and the American public was still quite angry at the poor handling of Cuba and Kruschev!

Other than to see a rather nude Gretchen Mol the movie is pointless

[jordondave-28085 · 5/10 · 17 September 2023]

(2009) An American Affair DRAMA/ INTRIGUE

Co-produced and directed by William Olsson, that has Cameron Bright starring as a precocious 13 year old boy who often witnesses the doings of his floozy/scandalous female neighbor played by Gretchen Mol as she plays Catherine, and her role during the assassination of JFK etc... This is nothing more than a pure 'what if' film coming from the point-of-view of a 13 year old, which the film indicates that their might've been more than what people know about the assassination of JFK- which is pure horse crap. And some of the movie was just an excuse to get Mol naked!