Chappaquiddick is a good film, and very well-cast. It meticulously details the 1969 tragedy in which Senator Ted Kennedy drove his car into a lake on Chappaquiddick (an occasional island on the eastern end of Matha's Vineyard, Massachusetts), killing Mary Jo Kopechne, and the subsequent political and social ramifications of the incident.
There's really no new information here, and if you've followed the story over the years, it won't change whatever perception you have of the whole thing. But it will give you some historical context, and a better understanding of what actually happened. Nothing in the story is whitewashed, and Kennedy (played believably by Jason Clark) is not presented as a sympathetic character at all, although it will at least give you some insight into what made him tick, if not some actual empathy for him.
Ed Helms, who plays Kennedy cousin Joe Gargan, can definitely hold his own in a drama like this, and it was good to see comedian Jim Gaffigan get cast in this kind of vehicle. The most memorable performance, however, is brought by veteran actor, Bruce Dern, who plays the senior, post-stroke Joe Kennedy. With virtually no dialogue (Kennedy lost the ability to speak in the stroke), he creates a riveting image that is Oscar-worthy.
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