Ryan Murphy’s new limited series Love Story attempts to portray the iconic real-life whirlwind romance between John F. Kennedy Jr. (Paul Anthony Kelly) and Carolyn Bessette (Sarah Pidgeon). This “doomed” story of star-crossed lovers has always been a source of fascination. The couple’s tumultuous history, their untimely deaths in 1999, along with the tragedy associated with the Kennedy name, are all factors of a story worth retelling – but for two people who already seemed so larger-than-life, can any dramatic portrait, no matter how accurately dressed, ever do their story justice?
The series has been shrouded in controversy ever since its announcement, with Murphy being no stranger to public outrage and backlash — his other notable series American Crime Story and Monsters, both anthologies depicting various famous crime cases — have been scrutinised for sensationalising the tragedies of real people for profit. The same criticisms have been applied to Love Story, most notably with Jack Schlossberg, JFK Jr.’s nephew, speaking out and calling the production “grotesque.” But, how does the series itself justify the adoption of this story through its actual content?
The two leading actors give effective, emotional performances which easily outshine the rest of the main cast. Similarly, the series itself is at its best when the focus is on the main romantic story, and when the viewer can simply become enthralled in Pidgeon and Kelly’s catatonic chemistry. Pidgeon particularly, embodies the spirit of the effortlessly chic Bessette, and perfectly portrays a woman’s constant fight between love and fame . However, there is certainly irony in depicting Bessette as tormented by media and conversations about her private life in a costumed, subjective fictionalised portrayal of her private life which she sadly isn’t here to sign off on. There are also some questionable choices in portrayals — most notably Daryl Hannah (Dree Hemingway) who is depicted as a vapid drama queen, and according to Vogue has been “done dirty.” The storytelling itself is non-chronological, which, while engaging, for a biographical tragedy makes me feel slightly uncomfortable when the young couple’s actual plane crash death is “teased” or foreshadowed like a cheap plot twist.
Love Story plays into the viewers’ impression of 90s style and pop culture. A big part of this is the soundtrack. While some of the music choices like songs from Sade and The Cranberries might feel a bit on the nose — the easily recognisable and self-referential needle-drops translate the cultural iconography of the couple and the setting for newer and younger audiences.
“Sarah Pidgeon at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival 2” by Adam Chitayat is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.