Solid conventional film

Rating: 9/10 (8 November 2015)

Spielberg's 'Bridge of Spires' is a solid, conventional, following a style that he has wrought over his career as film maker. As film's opening alerts us, it's a mostly true story, some facts having been modified or slightly changed to accommodate the narrative. Missing is the key that brought about the capture of Rudolph I. Abel: the nickel given to the 'Brooklyn Eagle' newsboy that had the microfiche of data for Moscow. 'Bridge of Spies' happens during the early Cold War years that 'Trumbo' takes place. Here the good and the bad is clearly delineated, in the person of Donahue (Tom Hanks) who defends the spy Abel (Mark Ryland). Hanks is faithful to the Constitution and to the law that says Abel is innocent until proved guilty. Even though the judge, the spooks in the CIA and the whole legal system want a speedy show trial of sorts, to show the superiority of the God fearing capitalism of the US versus atheistic communism of the Soviet Union. A parallel story is on another track the U-2 pilot Gary Francis Power who gets shot down while on a hush hush CIA spy mission in Soviet territory. He doesn't kill himself which was part of his mission if captured, and even though he didn't break under interrogation he remained suspect and tainted with cowardice and perhaps suspicion of treason. Donahue is called on, as a private citizen to arrange for the exchange of spies on a bridge in divided Berlin. The capture by the East Germans of a Yale Ph.D. student Pryor gums up the works, the more especially since Donahue won't carry out the exchange without Powers and Pryor. In the course of defending Abel, Donahue and he are seen of men of principle and consistency of motive and mission. American diplomacy, spy networks and the law come off with unclean hands. We needn't worry about the Commies since we know how evil they are. Ryland plays Abel with great discernment and circumspection. Hanks has the modesty and intellectual honesty of the hero of the film he is and perhaps he was in real life. A man of commonsense who wanted to see the cash on the barrel head, as partner of a prestigious law firm dealing in insurance. 'Bridge' has a PG-13 rating which does suffer the way 'Trumbo' does with an 'R' rating. The former politics are acceptable and in the main stream whilst the latter is louche and out of sync with the main stream, though the two play by the same rule book, the US Constitution. But 'Bridge' remains within orthodoxy and 'Trumbo' smells of heresy.