Dry but Spielberg puts his stamp on it

Rating: 7/10 (11 February 2016)

It's so nice to watch a director who's completely in charge of whatever it is he's making. Even if the end product isn't perfect or to your liking, you can still appreciate that you are watching a master of his craft at work. Steven Spielberg will always be one of those directors. It helps he always works with an incredible team and has amazing actors at his disposal to direct, but the fact remains his name alone is always a stamp of quality. 'Bridge of Spies' isn't perfect, I have very little interest in the Cold War, the story itself within the war did very little for me, and yet it was an absolute pleasure to watch. A sure sign of class.
The film has been nominated for Best PIcture at the Academy Awards. I think the nomination surprised some as it wasn't Spielberg's finest work, and it was missing some of the "neccessaties" when it comes to getting a nod, like a compelling love story (you could say there was one but you'd be stretched to do so). Films that are considered lucky to get a nomination are never any shot of actually winning the award, as they are just supposed to consider themselves lucky to be there in the first place. So sadly you won't be seeing 'Bridge of Spies' take home the award. A well deserved nomination nonetheless.
Also nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role is Mark Rylance. Rylance blew me away. He has an amazing ability to appear as though he's not trying in the least bit, and yet at the same time completely steal a scene - even from the likes of Tom Hanks. The Coen Brothers, along with Matt Charman, wrote some terrific and Oscar worthy dialogue for him to deliver admittedly, but it was no doubt him that brought those words to life. Everyone is going to have a tough time knocking Sylvester Stallone off his perch for the award this year but if anyone can do it I believe it's Rylance.
The only thing really holding it back from being great is that it's a touch dry. I never felt any emotion towards any character throughout the entire film. That, along with the fact that there is very little humour anywhere in the mix, can make it a tough watch at times. The quality though makes it worth the price of admission. Nothing is done half-heartedly, the sets are astonishing, even set on the actual bridge the events happened on. Hanks is his usual charismatic self and Rylance is in masterful form in every scene he's in. It's probably not one Spielberg will be most remembered for when we look back in 50 years, but I'm certain he'll still be proud to have it on his résumé.