Was I the only one moved to tears by Thirteen Days?

Rating: 9/10 (2 February 2001)

I'll agree with the other comments about bad accents, great Bobby and John acting, perfect characterization of others (subtitles were unnecessary for me), slightly too long, etc. It's a very good movie and you should see it if you know about history and you _definitely_ should see it if you don't know about history.
The thing that surprised me about the movie was that I broke into tears. Despite a personal reputation as a cold cynic, I do get moved by war drama -- the Midway torpedo bomber scene, the Gettysburg climax of Pickett's Charge -- but this was a nearly bloodless movie.
I think it was a reminder (or first expression) of the horrible fear and paralyzing helplessness I felt as a 12 year old. I still remember the tone of voice of the teacher who told us to be sure to watch the President on TV that night. I think that's the most fear I had ever heard in an adult's voice. (She didn't know _what_ was wrong, but she sure knew _something_ was seriously wrong.)
I would have expected more comments from people roughly the same age about their feelings at the time and how the movie renews those feelings. (I didn't get the same reaction from the excellent Guns of October with William Devane's tremendous John Kennedy with a dead-on accent.) Maybe I didn't cry at the time, but I was very afraid. It was good to release those 39 year old tears.