According to the plotline published by the studio, “Bobby” is “The story of the assassination of U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy, on June 6th, 1968, which centers around 22 people who were at the Ambassador Hotel where he was killed.”

The 22 characters chosen by writer, director, Estevez were probably selected to match the number of A and B-list actors vying for a part in this potentially moving story. Most of the back stories played by the 22 celebrities are superficial, disconnected tales of adultery, racism, growing old, and experimenting with LSD. The situations and dialog are equally weak, and do not contribute in the slightest to the horrific event they lead up to. For example, Anthony Hopkins and Harry Belafonte play two aging gentlemen who spend their time in the Ambassador Hotel lobby playing chess and sharing fading memories of their past. The actors involved cannot shed the blame for this scrambled story by claiming they only had cameo roles. They each had large enough parts that they should have been able to recognize a shallow screenplay.

The last 30 minutes of the movie center around the actual time sequence of the events surrounding the treacherous and unthinkable assassination of the heir-apparent to the Presidency of the United States. But the first 1 1/2 hours are not worth the wait.