Spielberg.....another masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (27 November 2015)

27 November 2015 Film of Choice at The Plaza Dorchester Tonight - The Bridge of Spies Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks reunite for this tale based on the true events resulting in Gary Powers and his U2 being shot down over the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War. America had in their possession a man they believed to be a Russian spy and James B Donovan, an unassuming insurance lawyer was coerced into negotiating the exchange of the two men. This film was pure Spielberg. Extremely well shot using interesting angles to provide menace and intimidation, combined with writing provided by Matt Charman and the amazing Joel and Ethan Cohen, this film had me glued to my seat. It wasn't all action, it was gritty, moving, and in places even amusing. It was also very sobering as we were treated to scenes of the wall being built between East and West Germany and the desperation of people trying to cross before it was completed. The plane spotter part of me was happy to see the U2 being depicted (whether it was real or a model I don't know but it looked pretty good). I could easily watch this again. Superb performance from Tom Hanks and I really liked Mark Rylance, who played the 'Russian Spy' Rudolf Abel, spy or not his performance evoked empathy for the character. It was good to move away from superheroes and disasters for a while and get my teeth into a gritty drama.