Four Days in November 11"x17" Framed Poster Review

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(More customer reviews)"In the memory of man, few events have shocked the world as those Four Days in November. Here, with scenes never presented before, is a complete motion picture chronicle of that incredible time in Dallas. Here is the minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour, day-by-day story -- with every detail revealed, every question answered."
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The words quoted above appeared on some of the United Artists promotional materials advertising one of the best documentary films ever made (and, in my opinion, THE very finest motion picture dealing with the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy) -- "Four Days In November" -- which debuted in American movie theaters on Saturday, November 21st, 1964, which was just one day shy of the first anniversary of JFK's assassination. (The film had a premiere in New York City on October 7th, 1964, six weeks before its nationwide release date.)
"Four Days In November", a black-and-white documentary produced and directed by Mel Stuart and skillfully narrated by actor Richard Basehart, remains my all-time favorite JFK-related program (whether it be a movie or a TV special). It's a perfectly-edited chronological documentary, guiding the viewer through all four of those sad November days that shocked the nation and the world in late 1963.
"Four Days" received quite a bit of acclaim and praise following its release, and was even nominated for an Oscar statue (receiving an Academy Award nomination in the category of "Best Documentary Feature" for 1964).
By filming several "re-creations" in order to simulate the actual November 1963 events (using some of the people who were directly involved in those historic events, such as Wes Frazier, Linnie Randle, William Whaley, and Johnny Brewer), this David Wolper production provides its audience with a true sense of "being there" as the seemingly-unbelievable occurrences were unfolding on November 22-25, 1963, when 46-year-old John Kennedy was gunned down by 24-year-old Lee Harvey Oswald on Elm Street in Dallas, Texas (and then when Oswald himself became a murder victim at the hands of nightclub operator Jack Ruby two days after JFK's slaying).
"Four Days" was made within a matter of mere months of the assassination, which helped make the re-creations all the more effective, since the people involved, the locations, the landmarks, and even the cars being shown on screen had not changed much (if at all) since the tragedy occurred.
One of the movie's re-created scenes that has an especially eerie quality to it is the segment where we see Wesley Frazier driving his 1953 Chevrolet sedan toward the "drab bulk" of the Texas School Book Depository, which looms ahead in the foreground. Frazier was Lee Oswald's 19-year-old Book Depository co-worker who gave Oswald a ride to work on the morning of President Kennedy's assassination.
In addition to the re-created portions of the movie, there's an abundance of stock news footage presented throughout the documentary. In fact, the majority of the film is composed of television news coverage and archival film clips, including some pre-November 22nd footage covering JFK's activities in the days leading up to that black Friday in Dallas (including some rarely-seen clips of Kennedy's November 18th trip to Florida and his visits to the Texas cities of San Antonio, Houston, and Fort Worth the day before he was murdered).
Another reason why I believe "Four Days In November" belongs up on such a lofty pedestal is its outstanding music score, composed by Elmer Bernstein. Mr. Bernstein's stirring musical arrangements just seem to suit "Four Days" to a tee, in my opinion, adding emotional impact to each and every portion of the film.
Wolper Productions thankfully sidestepped all of the conspiracy theories and stuck by the Warren Commission Report's "Lone Assassin" verdict for this documentary. (Of course, there were far fewer conspiracy theories in existence when this movie was being produced in early to mid 1964, with many of the kookier theories about the assassination not surfacing until years later.)
The narration spoken by Richard Basehart in "Four Days" was written by Theodore Strauss. Below is an excerpt concerning Mr. Strauss that I copied directly from the original 1964 United Artists pressbook for "Four Days In November" (which was an advertising guide distributed to movie theaters in advance of the film's release):
"When the executive producer of "Four Days In November", David L. Wolper, asked best-selling author Theodore White "who would be the best man to write this important narration?", White immediately named Theodore Strauss. .... [Quoting Strauss:] "I can't recall any assignment, anywhere, that has been as exacting as this one. In the first place, to record these four unimaginable days accurately is a frightening prospect alone. The world sat over our shoulders, and to select just the right words to tell the story is a rather nervous task at best." [End quote.]
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"FOUR DAYS" ON VHS VIDEO:
"Four Days In November" was made available on VHS by MGM/UA Home Video in 1988, and was again released on videotape, in different packaging, by MGM in 2000.
Both of those VHS video versions of the movie offer up pretty good picture quality (in the 1.33:1 Full-Frame aspect ratio) and above-average audio quality as well (in Hi-Fi Mono). The 2000 video includes some MGM trailers at the beginning of the tape, whereas the '88 version does not. The film's running time is approximately 2 hours and 3 minutes.
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A FINAL NOTE:
Many of the facts surrounding President Kennedy's assassination have been disputed and debated by researchers for decades. And this tragic crime will likely remain a topic that shall cause heated debate for many more years to come.
But what the film "Four Days In November" does accomplish is to allow the viewer to re-live those sorrowful but spellbinding days from the autumn of 1963, in the order in which the events transpired, based on the evidence available.
Anyone who has accumulated a collection of John F. Kennedy-related videos and DVDs should definitely own a copy of this remarkable motion picture.
"Four Days" also serves as a very nice companion piece to the two exemplary books written by former Los Angeles prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi on the subject of the JFK assassination -- 2007's "Reclaiming History" and Mr. Bugliosi's 2008 paperback follow-up volume that, ironically, sports the exact same title as the David L. Wolper movie I've been discussing in this review, "Four Days In November".
David Von Pein
July 2001
August 2006
February 2008

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