The days the Earth stood still...

Rating: 8/10 (22 December 2005)

Thirteen Days tells the story of what happened those thirteen days in October, 1962, the event that became know as the Cuban missile crisis. It follows president John F. Kennedy and his closest team and shows how they handled the situation.
This is a well written movie. The plot is good and the characters as well. It's got suspense and thrill on the outside and the inside. A lot of dialog means you'll have to pay attention all the time, but this film really need all that dialog.
The acting is good. Bruce Greenwood does an excellent job as JFK and Kevin Costner is good as Kenny O'Donnell. They bring out the feeling and humanity in their characters and make them all much more alive.
The cinematography is nice. Good composition and lightning. Most of the shots are nothing out of the ordinary, just plain good, while others are really nice. The editing is also very good. The way they mix black and white and color works very well and along with the occasional rough look of the color footage, it gives the movie a kind of documentary look. It kind of look like real footage from 1962.
Trevor Jones has done a good job in scoring this film. The score fits the era in witch the film is set and it sets the mood and atmosphere very good.
I would have to say Thirteen Days is a film that, in a good way, reflects what happened behind the scenes on those thirteen days. I was not born when these events took place and so it gave me kind of an insight into what happened and so I found it both entertaining and a little educational.