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Nick Fraser
Storyville Series Editor
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RFK is the lesser-known Kennedy, but in some respects he has become the more relevant figure for our times.
RFK lived in the shadow of his brother Jack, and helped organise JFK's rise to power. Bobby, as he was called by his intimates, was shier and more driven. He was also a serious Catholic, with 11 children.
He began his career working for the despised Joe McCarthy, and he was a hard-line anti-Communist. But he changed, in particular after the death of his brother, which caused him enormous grief, and from which he took a long time to recover. By 1968, when he belatedly decided to run for the Democratic presidential nomination against Lyndon Johnson, he had become a rarity in American politics - a truly radical, thoughtful protagonist for those excluded by the mainstream of American life.
This film, which is full of marvellous archive footage from Kennedy's most eloquent speeches, closes with the question: what would have happened if Kennedy had not been assassinated in 1968? It's a haunting question, and as one contemplates the present state of American politics, it's hard not to wish that the likes of RFK were around.
 Storyville Homepage
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