Seberg, directed by Benedict Andrews, is a worthy effort that could have been more effective had the pacing been sped up. Watching the film was like playing a record on a speed too slow.
Editing of one scene would have quickened its stride; a totally superfluous NYC scene in which Jean Seberg, portrayed expertly by Kristen Stewart, explains a fact to her husband that was obvious to him, and all of us in the audience, in the previous LA scene.
And I understood what the writers Anna Waterhouse and Joe Shrapnel were going for in a handful of moments suggesting Seberg was emotionally unstable, but they also should have shown her erratic love life a little more clearly. After some research, it is obvious that part of her demise could easily be attributed to the volatile types with whom she chose as lovers. In fact, the person who saw her last was her final lover, playboy Ahmed Hasni. Seberg’s maid stated she had heard them fighting before her disappearance. Not the first time an emotionally delicate person goes missing and people chalk it up to her ‘condition’.
Besides Kristen Stewart, a fine performance was clocked in by Jack O’Connell, who played an FBI agent character with a moral dilemma over his assignment. Anthony Mackie and Zazie Beetz also round out the cast with strong moments as the African Americans who the FBI was targeting, using Seberg as their pawn.
Above all, the people in charge of costuming should be nominated, since I drooled over every outfit Stewart donned.
Worth seeing for an honest assessment of the USA in the late 60’s and 70’s and for Stewart’s heart felt performance.
