This Film is Flawless

Rating: 10/10 (22 October 2015)

Is there really any danger of this film being bad when you have talent like Steven Spielberg directing and the Coen brothers writing? When you combine these three with the absolutely phenomenal cast and an interesting story then I could probably just tell you guys to go out and give it a watch and be done with it. The rest of this post is basically going to be me talking about how incredibly good this movie is so I definitely recommend everyone give it a shot.
The story focuses on an insurance lawyer named James Donovan (Tom Hanks) in 1950s America. The Cold War is just getting into full swing and the whole country is on edge because of a possible war with the Soviet Union. The US and the USSR are constantly spying on one another and looking to find the spies in their midst. Rudolf Abel (Mark Rylance), a Soviet spy in America, has just been caught and the government wants Donovan to defend him, or at least put on a show of defending him. Little do they know that Donovan takes his job and morals very seriously and will bend over backwards to try to help everyone depending on him. Things soon get even more complicated when the Soviets shoot down an American spy plane and capture the pilot. Donovan has his work cut out for him.
I mentioned before that the cast is excellent and some of these names will probably speak for themselves. Tom Hanks practically embodies his characters and I can't think of a single moment when he's given us a poor performance. This movie is no exception. Donovan is a quick talking lawyer but has an extremely strong sense of morality and truly goes out of his way to help everyone around him. Rylance's Abel also has very strong convictions but he's an enemy spy so the majority of the American people really don't want anything good to happen to him. Rylance portrays this character quite well and very calmly. Abel doesn't get bent out of shape for anything and he shows more fear over what might happen to Donovan than he does for himself. Everyone does a fantastic job but the film really centers around these two and they carry the movie beautifully.
Spielberg films are always gorgeous to look at and this movie is no exception. The transition between the US and East Germany is great and really goes to show just what the country was going through at this time. East Germany is full of crumbling architecture and is obviously pretty deep in poverty. The scenes in the US look like paradise compared to what the East Germans are going through. I also like the differences in the depiction of the prisons in the US, USSR, and East Germany. I don't want to spoil too much but let's just say that prison in the US is a cakewalk compared to the others.
One of the best things this film does is to portray the characters in shades of gray rather than force an actual bad guy onto us. There is no antagonist here. Donovan is negotiating with people that are technically enemies of the United States government but they're not his personal enemies and they certainly don't want to start a war. That's the important thing to remember here and helps to explain how Donovan was able to negotiate as well as he did. No one wants to start a war, at least not anyone that's sane. The Soviets in the film are portrayed as an obstacle that Donovan must overcome and convince but it's obvious that they don't want a war anymore than anyone else. It's great that both sides have characters that we can root for and against.
I'm going to keep this short since I can't think of a single complaint to say about this film. It's beautifully directed, very well acted, and the story is interesting. The dialogue is also intelligent and even witty at times. Maybe I'll think of something later but as it stands now this movie, at least in my opinion, is flawless. That being said, historical films aren't for everyone, but for those of you that get into this kind of movie, do yourself a favor and give this one a watch. It's really an excellent film.