Steven Spielberg became a legend in part by making movies that perfectly targeted in the inner child in all of us - this one targets the inner forgotten middle aged man. Tom Hanks works hard at his boring job (insurance lawyer), isn't particularly respected by his nagging wife or ungrateful kids. He gets a call to defend a Soviet spy (Mark Rylance) which he does with such passion that he saves the spy from execution and people on the train start scowling at him. But he proves Everyone Wrong when the spy is used to swap for Francis Gary Powers. Then everyone hears about what he does and people are nice to him on the train again.
It's an odd sort of movie. There's a very sympathetic description of a Soviet spy, who is calm, and brave and a bit doddery in a loveable English eccentric sort of way - Hanks keeps going on about how hes better than say the Rosenbergs because he was born Russian. But he is in the country spying isn't he? And is it so great we got back Francis Gary Powers? I mean, yeah, he was brave and that crap but it was hardly a massive victory for freedom.
I feel in my guts there wasn't enough story here for a feature film. It was a hit, but I'm inclined to put that down to the fact it's a big budget film for adults with a star in it, that tries to tell a story... Hollywood makes hardly any movies like that these days. And it does a nice line in middle aged man wish fulfillment.
I'm not sure why Spielberg wanted to make this. I get the impression he may have been excited about the possibilities involved in recreating the era. It's slow paced and not that gripping and at 140 minutes way too long. The stakes feel low. Who cares about spies who've been caught? Or a lawyer whose wife nags him? Tom Hanks isn't Jimmy Stewart - I miss the days when Tom Hanks played Tom Hanks. But it does have novelty and the production design is impressive.
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