Bridge of Spies (B) Movie Review
Tom Hanks stars as James Donovan, a New York City lawyer pressured into defending a Russian spy, played by Mark Rylance, in the Cold War era and in doing so, causes an uproar in the American public. Donovan is given the chance to settle this uproar when the opportunity arises for a trade between captured spies of America and Russia.
Steven Spielberg directed this. The guy knows what he's doing. I'm sure anyone who knows something about film will expect a Speilberg film to be good, or at least well directed. Bridge of Spies is no exception to this rule, as it is directed very well. He captures some poignant shots and finds a message behind these mostly true events, that message being that people are people, no matter which country they come from. A Russian spy in America is the equivalent to an American spy in Russia. He also finds some very interesting characters in his screenplay, one in particular being Rudolph Abel, the Russian spy being defended by Donovan. These characters, being as interesting as they are, bleed into some tense conversation.
But if a lot of talk is something you don't enjoy in a film, maybe skip Bridge of Spies. It's quite talky. By no means do I need non-stop action but this film has conversations in it that can sometimes feel unncessary. Some felt that they didn't progress the story or were simply uninvolving. The majority of the script is very good though in terms of characters and dialogue. Despite some long conversations that don't feel super compelling, much of the dialogue is interesting.
Tom Hanks gives a great performance as the morally confident lawyer who lives by the Constitution and has a clear divide between right and wrong. Speaking in terms of character arc, this divide doesn't really shift or fade but Donovan is more enlightened by Abel, who shows him that all people are the same in their nature, regardless of country.
We should speak about the real star of Bridge of Spies though, Mark Rylance. Playing Abel, the Russian spy being defended by Donovan, Rylance steals almost every scene he's in. He utilizes a deadpan delivery in a few comedic lines that made many people in my audience laugh but his performance also proves to be genuinely moving in a couple key scenes. He's easily a contender for Best Supporting Actor this year, and deserving of it too.
Speaking about Bridge of Spies technically, it's beautiful. The costume design and production design is marvelous and Oscar worthy. The score that fades in and out through the film by Thomas Newman is beautiful (though a tad generic) and I wish Spielberg incorporated the score a little more than he did. Cinematography by Janusz Kaminski is gorgeous. Kaminski has this way of capturing light that I find really interesting. A lot of times you'll see light only coming in through windows or the lighting of a setting using snow and the images are beautiful to look at.
There's something I disliked about Bridge of Spies though that I can't exactly put my finger on. I was not completely wrapped up in this tale. I admire the excellent filmmaking but there's something about the story at its core that didn't grab me or wholly engage with me. I respect and admire the merit of the filmmaking but I hardly had a personal connection with. Though, there's a lot of great craftsmanship here that I think many people will enjoy.
FINAL GRADE: B
MPAA RATING: PG-13 for some violence and brief strong language
Steven Spielberg directed this. The guy knows what he's doing. I'm sure anyone who knows something about film will expect a Speilberg film to be good, or at least well directed. Bridge of Spies is no exception to this rule, as it is directed very well. He captures some poignant shots and finds a message behind these mostly true events, that message being that people are people, no matter which country they come from. A Russian spy in America is the equivalent to an American spy in Russia. He also finds some very interesting characters in his screenplay, one in particular being Rudolph Abel, the Russian spy being defended by Donovan. These characters, being as interesting as they are, bleed into some tense conversation.
But if a lot of talk is something you don't enjoy in a film, maybe skip Bridge of Spies. It's quite talky. By no means do I need non-stop action but this film has conversations in it that can sometimes feel unncessary. Some felt that they didn't progress the story or were simply uninvolving. The majority of the script is very good though in terms of characters and dialogue. Despite some long conversations that don't feel super compelling, much of the dialogue is interesting.
Tom Hanks gives a great performance as the morally confident lawyer who lives by the Constitution and has a clear divide between right and wrong. Speaking in terms of character arc, this divide doesn't really shift or fade but Donovan is more enlightened by Abel, who shows him that all people are the same in their nature, regardless of country.
We should speak about the real star of Bridge of Spies though, Mark Rylance. Playing Abel, the Russian spy being defended by Donovan, Rylance steals almost every scene he's in. He utilizes a deadpan delivery in a few comedic lines that made many people in my audience laugh but his performance also proves to be genuinely moving in a couple key scenes. He's easily a contender for Best Supporting Actor this year, and deserving of it too.
Speaking about Bridge of Spies technically, it's beautiful. The costume design and production design is marvelous and Oscar worthy. The score that fades in and out through the film by Thomas Newman is beautiful (though a tad generic) and I wish Spielberg incorporated the score a little more than he did. Cinematography by Janusz Kaminski is gorgeous. Kaminski has this way of capturing light that I find really interesting. A lot of times you'll see light only coming in through windows or the lighting of a setting using snow and the images are beautiful to look at.
There's something I disliked about Bridge of Spies though that I can't exactly put my finger on. I was not completely wrapped up in this tale. I admire the excellent filmmaking but there's something about the story at its core that didn't grab me or wholly engage with me. I respect and admire the merit of the filmmaking but I hardly had a personal connection with. Though, there's a lot of great craftsmanship here that I think many people will enjoy.
FINAL GRADE: B
MPAA RATING: PG-13 for some violence and brief strong language