Eastwood and DiCaprio bring history to life Written by James Bradshaw.

Tears were shed when Clint Eastwood announced that his acting days were over, but in this fascinating portrait of the former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, the octogenarian legend shows that he still has a major contribution to make to the world of cinema.

‘J. Edgar’ is based on the life of one of the most powerful, controversial and complex characters in American history; the man who led America’s foremost criminal investigative organisations for almost five decades. A man whose over-zealous pursuit of domestic tranquillity led him to disregard the civil liberties of anyone deemed a threat, or anyone who stood in his way. And a man who eagerly sought out the darkest secrets of his political masters while jealously guarding his own.

Leonardo DiCaprio turns in a virtuoso performance that scans Hoover’s whole professional life, from his time working as a 24-year-old field agent in the aftermath of WW1 to his death aged 77 in 1972. Hoover was famous for his secretive nature and introverted personality, but this film provides a detailed account of Hoover the man, the challenges he faced and above all the people who shaped him, from his overbearing mother (Judi Dench), to his loyal secretary (Naomi Watts) and on to the person who was closer to J. Edgar than any man or woman, his long-time FBI colleague and confidante, Clyde Tolson (ably played by rising star Armie Hammer).

The relationship between the two lifelong bachelors has been the subject of an enormous amount of speculation and controversy. Many have claimed that Hoover was a closet homosexual, though this has been angrily refuted by some of his supporters who see this is a calculated smear. Stranger still are the allegations of his alleged cross-dressing, a practice that didn’t sit well with his public image as an ultra-conservative. Eastwood handles these aspects of Hoover’s life with a subtlety sadly lacking from many of his colleagues, and keeps the focus on Hoover, his struggles against organised crime, Communist infiltrators and the myriad of other potential threats to America that were the focus of Hoover’s obsessive attention.

Sleek and stylish, but never shallow, ‘J. Edgar’ mixes the political intrigue of the mid-20th century with the personal repression and innermost turmoil of a truly remarkable character. It’s well worth taking the time to watch.