J. Edgar (2011)

The film is a biographical account of FBI director J. Edgar, during his career that spanned 48 yrs. Edgar was a man who wanted to get rid of American society's evils like communism and later the menace of gangsters. He lived with his ageing mother and didn't have a social life.

He liked to take the credit and always loved to be in the spotlight. He is assisted by his secretary Helen Gamby and his "man Friday" Clyde Tolson with whom he has a homosexual relationship.

Edgar narrates his experiences to a writer so that they know his story and the story of the FBI. He doesn't always reveal the truth which only Helen and Clyde know. A controversial career on the whole which had a lot of secrecy.

Helen hides all the secret surveillance files that Edgar maintained, about high profile people in the society. In the end, he dies a natural death as his partner Clyde mourns. The president is on the look out to destroy all the secret files but Helen keeps them safe.

Review

• Intense performance by Leonardo as the controversial J. Edgar whose life is anything but normal. Solid support roles for Naomi Watts and Armie Hammer. Armie takes the cake in the climax and towards the end when he is attacked by a bout of fits. The dialogue diction of both LDC and Armie is excellent. 
• The makeup for the ageing 3 main characters is authentic. 
• There are frequent time shifts in the narrative
• Edgar's tackling of the communism menace and the Lindbergh kidnapping is intelligent to say the least. The fingerprint collection, the handwriting analysis, the wood analysis, monitoring of registration numbers on the ransom notes etc etc. Truly indigenous. 

VERDICT

Clint Eastwood and Leonardo - the best possible combo. Their film is gripping with great performances by the lead trio.