There are a lot of movies about John F. Kennedy, and even more films featuring his name/likeness (The Butler, for instance). This September another film gets added to the mix, and this one aims to offer a “near real time” account of what took place in Dallas on November 22, 1963.

Parkland, named for the hospital where Kennedy was treated after he was shot in Dallas, opens September 20 nationwide and features a slew of notable names. Ron Livingston and Billy Bob Thronton are secret service agents, Paul Giamatti is Arnold Zapruder, Zac Efron and Marcia Gay Harden are Parkland employees, and Jacki Weaver and James Badge Dale are Lee Harvey Oswald’s immediate family. The trailer released this morning features a variety of vignettes showcasing the biggest moments from the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated. There is no burying the lead, and less than a minute in, the shot that claimed the president’s life is fired (off screen). At this point the trailer reveals what promises to be the most intriguing angle of the film, which is the time between the shooting and the president’s actual death. Efron plays the doctor in charge of attempting to save his life, and from what we see it seems like a much better casting decision than we could have imagined. You can view the trailer below.

The official synopsis for Parkland reads: November 22nd, 1963 was a day that changed the world forever when young American President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. We follow in almost real time a handful of individuals forced to make split-second decisions after this incomprehensible event that would change their lives and forever alter our worlds landscape: the young doctors and nurses at Parkland Hospital, the chief of the Dallas Secret Service, the unwitting cameraman who captured what has become the most watched and examined film in history, the FBI Agents who had gunman Lee Harvey Oswald within their grasp and Vice President Lyndon Johnson who had to take control of a country in a moments notice. Thrust into a scenario of unprecedented drama with unimaginable consequences, these key characters respond with shock, outrage, determination and courage

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James Shotwell

James Shotwell is the founder of Under The Gun Review. He loves writing about music and movies almost as much as he loves his two fat cats. He's also the co-founder of Antique Records and the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. You should probably follow him on Twitter.

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