Written by Sylvie Baggett, Photo Courtesy of IMDB
“Seberg” had the makings to be a great work of historical narrative: a humble Hollywood starlet, government conspiracy, the civil rights movement and a fraught Los Angeles. If I didn’t know any better, I would say it was all made up. Jean Seberg, the French-adopted American actress the film is named after, was, in fact, a real person.
After donating thousands of dollars to activist groups like the Black Panthers and proclaiming herself an ally of black America, the United States’ federal government set out to “neutralize” her in any way possible. Libel, bugging her telephones, exposing affairs. There was no stopping their attempt to discredit Seberg.
It sounds like the plot of a novel left to decay in a dental office’s waiting room, the corners of the pages stained with fluoride. It’s unbelievable, yes, but it’s true.“Seberg” had every available opportunity to explore the civil rights movement through a new lense, to address white privilege and open a dialogue about race relations in 1960s America that is too often swept by the wayside. The U.S. government was dead set on destroying black power movements and would let nothing stand in their way. But by the end of the film, you kind of forgot about that.
“Seberg” was a commercialized movie about race that made up for its lack of depth with expensive costumes and lavish locations. The characters, for the most part, fell flat. The elements were all there: a forbidden love interest (Hakim Jamal, played by Andrew Mackie), a government agent who ends up having a change of heart (Jack Solomon, played by Jack O’Connell) and an antagonizing, traditionally awful 1960s father (Carl Kowalski, played by Vince Vaughn).
The relationships between characters is without complexity, though there is plenty of low-stake conflict to try and make it seem so. Everything falls into place in a way that is too simple for the gravity of the history behind the film.
The only character that manages to get a little skin in the game and push “Seberg” from suburban to interesting is Jean Seberg played by Kristen Stewart. She imbues Seberg with a quiet intellect and resolve that outperforms the others instantly. Stewart undoubtedly carries the weight of the film on her back, doing her best to polish clunky dialogue and really reach for what lies beneath the surface.
With so much history and pain to account for, the film opted to take a cheaply-beautiful route instead. By glossing over the relationships—between characters, between races, the government and the people— “Seberg” discredits the people it was based off of and leaves the audience with the taste of Splenda in their mouths. It’s just not quite the real thing.
