Bridge of Spies
Dec. 12th, 2015 09:30 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alobearI wasn't overly fussed about the prospect of Bridge of Spies when I saw the trailer a while ago. That's why, even though the other members of Film Club were keen, I didn't initially organise a trip (yes, I abuse my power as club president - but then, if I didn't organise the trips, we'd never see anything!). Then, my parents went to see it, and came back raving about how good it was, so I relented. And I'm very glad I did!
Bridge of Spies is difficult to categorise - courtroom drama crossed with spy thriller? But, apart from a plane being shot down in the middle, there's very little in the way of action or excitement, suspense or thrills. Where the film's genius truly lies is in the stellar performances of Tom Hanks and Mark Rylance, an excellent script helping them to create characters you can't help but root for.
I was gripped from start to finish, and very much enjoyed the multiple moments of unexpected humour (most likely provided by the Coen brothers, who polished the script).
The only weakness I can come up with was that the story apparently jumped from 1957 to 1961 somewhere in the middle (about the time the wall went up) - but there was no indication that I could see that this happened. Still, it wasn't necessary to know - it just made it seem as everything happened very quickly and conveniently in terms of proving Tom Hanks' character right. It also reduced the impact of the American pilot's imprisonment by the Russians, as it appeared he was only a prisoner for a few weeks, while Wikipedia tells me it was actually nearly two years.
Bridge of Spies is difficult to categorise - courtroom drama crossed with spy thriller? But, apart from a plane being shot down in the middle, there's very little in the way of action or excitement, suspense or thrills. Where the film's genius truly lies is in the stellar performances of Tom Hanks and Mark Rylance, an excellent script helping them to create characters you can't help but root for.
I was gripped from start to finish, and very much enjoyed the multiple moments of unexpected humour (most likely provided by the Coen brothers, who polished the script).
The only weakness I can come up with was that the story apparently jumped from 1957 to 1961 somewhere in the middle (about the time the wall went up) - but there was no indication that I could see that this happened. Still, it wasn't necessary to know - it just made it seem as everything happened very quickly and conveniently in terms of proving Tom Hanks' character right. It also reduced the impact of the American pilot's imprisonment by the Russians, as it appeared he was only a prisoner for a few weeks, while Wikipedia tells me it was actually nearly two years.
