An American Affair
List Price:
Our Price: $3.97
You Save: $11.01 (73%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.59 (click here)
Category: DVD
See more DVD details
Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada
Canada
DVD details
Actor: Gretchen Mol, Noah WyleBrand: MOL,GRETCHEN
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language)
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.77:1
Running Time: 93 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2009-07-28
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Model: 68109905
Studio: Screen Media
Product features:
- AMERICAN AFFAIR, AN (DVD MOVIE)
DVD Reviews of An American Affair
DVD Review: coming-of-age tale meets JFK
Summary: 3 Stars
***1/2
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 divorcee 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 foregroound, 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.
More An American Affair reviews:
1
1
Description of An American Affair
Set in 1963, in the swirl of glamour and intrigue that turned President John F. Kennedy's Washington into Camelot, a young teenager has an inside view of JFK?s torrid affair with his neighbor and secret CIA assassination plans. History unfolds in front of your eyes in this gripping and dramatic coming of age story.Bestsellers in DVD
![The Story of Jeremiah [VHS] Image](/images/noimg.gif)
The Story of Jeremiah [VHS]Vision Video; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Wresting With God [VHS]by Vision Video
Vision Video; Published: 1990-10-01; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Price in other shops:
Study Bible Video with Workbook [VHS]Spring Arbor Distributors; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $7.95
Price in other shops:
Tempo:Childrens TV Favourites Video [VHS]HarperCollins Audio; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $9.17
Price in other shops:
Tempo.Herbs:Parseley'Sb/ Party Video [VHS]HarperCollins Audio; VHS Tape; VHS Video
![Strike the Original Match [VHS] Image](/images/Strike-the-Original-Match-VHS-0001374079-X.jpg)
Strike the Original Match [VHS]New Liberty Films; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Price in other shops:
![Medjugorje The Miracles and the Message [VHS] Image](/images/Medjugorje-The-Miracles-and-the-Message-VHS-0001373293-X.jpg)
Medjugorje The Miracles and the Message [VHS]JPN Film Production; Release date: 1995-12-15; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $29.99
Mayo Clinic Echocardiography Review Course for Boards and Recertification DVD 2008by Mayo
DVD
Price in other shops:
Pediatric Diagnostic Imaging DVD: Single Userby Oakstone
DVD
Price in other shops:
Cost Accounting [VHS]by Charles T. Horngren, George Foster, Srikant M. Datar, Howard Teall
Pearson Canada, Toronto; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Similar DVDs, VHS Video, Audio CDs
Crossing OverUniversal Music Video Dist.; Release date: 2009-06-09; DVD
Best price: $2.60
Price in other shops:
Music From Another RoomTCFHE/MGM; Release date: 2003-01-07; DVD
Best price: $3.48
Price in other shops:
Mad Dog and GloryMad Dog; Release date: 2004-03-02; Published: 2004-03-01; DVD
Best price: $1.58
Price in other shops:
Jennifer 8 (Widescreen Edition)PARAMOUNT HOME VIDEO; Release date: 2000-04-11; DVD
Best price: $4.00
Price in other shops:
RestraintMOYER,STEPHEN; Release date: 2008-08-19; DVD
Best price: $1.79
Price in other shops:
Dark MatterUniversal; Release date: 2009-04-14; DVD
Best price: $2.50
Price in other shops:
The Thirteenth FloorSony; Release date: 1999-10-05; DVD
Best price: $3.95
Price in other shops:
TenureUniversal Studios; Release date: 2010-04-13; DVD
Best price: $2.40
Price in other shops:
Forever MineRelease date: 2001-05-22; Published: 2001-05-01; DVD
Best price: $21.92
The Notorious Bettie PageHBO HOME VIDEO; Release date: 2006-09-26; DVD
Best price: $4.25
Price in other shops: