I have always known that J. Edgar Hoover was not a nice person. Since I have always had an affinity to writers, I was shocked to find out, when I was a young history buff, that this guy persecuted a lot of writers and people in the creative arts just because they opposed the American government or professed publicly their politics (anything that was left-wing was bad!). But these are writers - and they are supposed to do that!
Surprisingly, Clint Eastwood makes a very humanized version of J. Edgar and it does help that Leo just chews threw his role with so much verve and dedication. However, for me, Armie Hammer does the best acting job in the film for the simple reason that he shows that even the most reviled person in the world can have someone to love him! Imagine that! I can't believe that that hunk of a guy who did a wonderful job with the Winklevoss twins (in The Social Network) can really act! And this film is filled with heavyweight actors - Judi Dench, Naomi Watts, among them.
It's actually impossible to condense this guy's life in just 2 hours so I think what Eastwood did was pretty impressive! What surprises me in this move is that it is really a love story also!! I mean, I never thought this asshole of a guy can find someone to love him. And yeah he did! Even with all the banter behind their backs - it would be impossible not to see the devotion Edgar had for Tolson, and vice-versa - and it's very touching to see it onscreen.
Otherwise, there's nothing here that you may not read when you type J. Edgar Hoover in Wikipedia. This guy was the FBI and the FBI was him. I learned that lesson a long time ago. That he still couldn't reciprocate love till the end doesn't surprise me at all. I think the word asshole was invented for people like J. Edgar Hoover.
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