November 22 marks 60 years since President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas, and we’re still grappling with it. Sure, there were conspiracies to eliminate heads of state long before JFK drew his last breath, and there will no doubt be many to come, but what other event could have given birth to this many conspiracy theorists?

Made following the release of the Warren Commission’s report and based on attorney Mark Lane’s counterargument, Rush to Judgment is director Emile de Antonio’s 1967 documentary of the same name, following Lane as he interviews eyewitnesses to disprove the Warren Commission’s findings. The interviews are unvarnished and, at times, boring and repetitive—Lane’s primary argument is that multiple witnesses all saw and experienced the same truth—but the documentary itself is what matters. Refraining from cinematic flourishes, save for some comparison editing, de Antonio films Lane asking questions and captures the responses.

What becomes apparent is that the official record was not the truth, at least not for those who were there. They knew something—either through first-hand accounts or past interactions—that colored the events and brought them to a contrary conclusion.

Listening to these people, it’s no wonder we’re still debating who killed Kennedy, if the moon landings were faked, if 9/11 was an inside job—even the origin and impetus behind the COVID-19 pandemic. An American schism formed that day in 1963, the first of many. As one subject says, not just for himself but for generations to follow: “I think all of us who love this country should be alerted that something is wrong in the land.”

Rush to Judgment (1967)
Directed by Emile de Antonio
Based on the book by Mark Lane
FilmsWeLike, Not rated, Running time 124 minutes, In select theaters Nov. 22, 2023

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The above review first appeared at BoulderWeekly.com, “History starts here.”