These two early reviews on Bay Area sites of Max Good’s “The Assassination and Mrs. Paine.”
Now in her late 80s but still alert and spry, Paine has never been shy about sharing her perspective on the events of 1963, and as a result quickly became the subject of numerous accusations regarding her alleged role in the assassination. Berkeley-based director Max Good’s film doesn’t draw any firm conclusions, but it also doesn’t shy away from confronting Mrs. Paine with difficult questions — which she bats away with impressive equanimity. CIA agent, Quaker peace activist, or both? Until the federal government finally releases all the relevant classified documents — and Trump and Biden both flinched when presented with the opportunity — we’re unlikely to find out.
The beauty of Max Good’s film “The Assassination And Mrs. Paine” is that its inconclusiveness turns out to be the best approach in recounting Paine’s story….
Good’s both-siderist approach to recounting Paine’s story does justice to this contentious material…. the film allows viewers to see that neither the official account of the Kennedy assassination nor the various conspiracy theories offered as the true account of this high-profile crime has all the answers. The tone of the film seesaws from seeing Paine as an ordinary peacenik and the theorists as projecting more bluster than conclusiveness to raising eyebrows with unexpected details of Paine’s family history and wishing to have heard from Marina Oswald herself.