Bridge of Spies - 2015 - Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks

I had noted at the back of my mind that Bridge of Spies was likely to be an interesting movie to watch, primarily because of three names, Steven Spielberg (Director and Producer), Tom Hanks (usually anything that Tom Hanks is associated with, is worth watching) and the Coen brothers (though I have not watched all their movies, I have been a fan since Fargo and more recently No Country For Old Men).

I missed watching it when it came to the local multiplex, however I managed to catch it recently on Cable TV, and am I glad that I did! I had not actually read about the movie much, I only knew that it was based in the era of the Cold War, a subject which fascinates me, given that I have read a lot of John Le Carré and Len Deighton. After watching the movie I searched to see if it was based on a book and to my surprise, I found that it was an original screenplay.

The movie is based on a real-life incident involving the swap of a Russian spy for an US U-2 spy plane pilot. It opens with the arrest of Rudolf Abel (Mark Rylance) in the United States and it is very evident that he is a Russian spy given that a transmitter is found in his room. The US is keen to show to the world that it is not a banana republic and they take justice seriously. Given that Abel does not have a lawyer and the Russians refuse to acknowledge him (Abel carries a UK passport), the US Government starts a search for someone appropriate to defend Abel.

Enter James Donovan (Tom Hanks), who is doing well at the law firm where he works and hopes to be promoted shortly. Donovan is approached by a senior partner in his firm and told that he should taken on the case as a favour to the firm as well as to the US government. Donovan is sceptical and doesn’t want to be part of a rigged trial. Donovan is assured that a free hand will be given and that he would be given a free hand to decide his strategy. Donovan reluctantly takes on the case, however is drawn in immediately after a couple of meetings with Abel.

Despite putting up a good defence, Donovan loses the case and Abel is sentenced to death. During the course of the trial, Donovan is branded by the media as anti-American and a traitor and the effect is felt on his family Abel appreciates all that Donovan has done for him but has accepted his fate. Donovan refuses to give up and appeals the sentence and gets it reduced to life imprisonment. This forms the first half of the movie and by itself is captivating and would have been worth watching, however there is more!

The US military has been carrying out aerial reconnaissances of the USSR by using its top secret U-2 spy plane and one of them crashes into Russian territory. The pilot is captured and sings like a canary, however that is unknown to the US side. Meanwhile, Donovan is looking forward to resuming his normal life. One day he gets a letter, supposedly from Abel’s wife and she asks Donovan whether he can meet the Abel family lawyer, a person called Vogel, and see if a swap can be arranged. Donovan reports this to the CIA who encourage him to pursue it, while retaining complete arms length and deniability for the transaction.

Donovan now finds himself in East Germany and sees first hand what the Cold War is all about and how there is not really much difference in the tactics used by both sides in the field. Donovan is however made of sterner stuff and retains his moral compass even as he tries to figure out who is bluffing whom. There is also a US graduate student thrown into the mix and Donovan uses his own initiative to engineer a 1-2 swap, Abel for the U-2 pilot and the student. The movie then builds up to its final denouement (in a very understated way) and also manages to thrown in a classic Cold War reference to Checkpoint Charlie.

Tom Hanks as Donovan is superb, however this is what we expect from Hanks, in a lesser actor this would have been termed as an outstanding or breakthrough performance. The real screen stealer is Mark Rylance as Abel, who through his calm demeanour and dead-pan humour, holds our attention in every scene he is in; I look forward to watching more of him in movies where he gets more screen time. Spielberg as director shows us that he has not lost his touch and the movie is as much his triumph as for Hanks/Rylance and the Coen brothers. Rylance, deservedly won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar as well as a slew of other awards.

Overall, this is a must watch movie for all film buffs, particularly for those who are interested in the Cold War and how small parts of it played out. I will run out of superlatives if I try to write anything more, so without further ado, go find it by whichever means and watch it at your earliest.

Rating: 5/5

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