nicholas latkovic

Clinton J. Hill (born 1932) is a former United States Secret Service agent who was in the presidential motorcade during the assassination of John F. Kennedy. After Kennedy was shot, Hill ran from the car immediately behind the presidential limousine and leapt onto the back of it, holding on while the car raced to Parkland Memorial Hospital. This action was documented in the famous Zapruder film. Hill is the last surviving passenger of the presidential limousine which arrived at Parkland.

- Wikipedia

Recommended videos:

Zap, Claudine. ‘Mrs. Kennedy and Me’: Jackie Kennedy’s secret service agent writes memoir. Yahoo! News. 6 Apr. 2012.

Morgan, Piers. “Hill: I’ve always felt a sense of guilt”. CNN. 5 Apr. 2012.

Unlike familiar documentaries which reconstruct the infamous parade route with hypothesized bullet paths over and over, The Kennedy Assassination: 24 Hours After scrutinizes every action, phone call, and decision after the last shot fired to present a clear time-line of the most awkward transition ever between two US administrations. From Parkland Hospital to Air Force One, never-before-seen arguments, dilemmas and motives are replayed to gain insight into a situation no one knew how to respond to.

This body of work records the events played that day for posterity, but more importantly serves a unique study into our own government procedures. Showing these procedures — which are executed with an inevitable flaw — turn a subject normally presented in a passive, textbook fashion into something very real… uncomfortable and uncertain for the viewers themselves.

Dividing this presentation into two distinct perspectives of Mrs. Kennedy and President Johnson, the viewer rotates shadowing each party to understand individual decisions which build a number of smaller but significant conflicts as hours pass.

I applaud all involved on this project in their effort to shed new light on what has already been done a hundred times over. Their clever methods of presentation, including a stunning blend of original footage and photography with cinematic accents, creates a body of work worthy of theatrical release. In the end, we have a piece that surpasses what all documentaries strive to achieve: to give a voice to those who can’t speak today, and to acknowledge the truth of information originally altered for public consumption.