Five years of Cold War espionage, with the attendant fallout from cloak-and-dagger machinations and public trials of captured spies, have been compressed by director Steven Spielberg into the compelling two-hour plus taut thriller “Bridge of Spies.”
The film’s title derives the nickname given to Glienicke Bridge, a restricted border crossing from the communist Eastern Bloc into the American sector of West Berlin, which will eventually feature prominently in the climactic scene.
During the 1960s, after the construction of the Berlin Wall that became the symbol of the oppressive totalitarian state of the East, Glienicke Bridge served as a spot for the exchange of prisoners between East and West.
The infamous bridge may be best known historically for the prisoner exchange engineered by New York insurance lawyer James B. Donovan (Tom Hanks), which allowed the United States to retrieve U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers (Austin Stowell) in 1962.
“Bridge of Spies” opens in 1957, when the Red Menace presents clear-and-present danger in the Cold War tensions and school children duck and cover during classroom drills accompanied by films about thermonuclear devastation.
A seemingly mild-mannered Brooklyn resident spends much of his time painting portraits and outdoor landscapes. But he proves to be Colonel Rudolf Abel (Mark Rylance), a Soviet spy arrested during a rousingly staged FBI raid of his apartment.
A former Nuremberg prosecutor and skilled negotiator, Donovan is tapped by the head (Alan Alda) of his prestigious law firm to provide the defense for Col. Abel in a trial overseen by a hardly unbiased judge (Dakin Matthews).
At first, for the obvious reasons of incurring public wrath for defending an enemy agent, Donovan is reluctant and unwilling to take the case. His wife Mary (Amy Ryan) and three children are equally unenthused by an assignment that could put the family at risk.
In the end, dedicated to the principle of a person’s right to a trial even though convinced he lacks a winning hand, Donovan undertakes the defense of the Russian spy, losing his case both in the original court and upon appeal, but at least avoiding the death penalty for his client.
Knowing that he would be unpopular did not deter Donovan from upholding his end as defense counsel. There are terrific scenes of him riding the subway to work while people read the morning papers featuring his picture and eye him with contempt. This underscores the barrister’s courage.
More than others in or out of the government, Donovan understood that sparing the life of the convicted spy would someday serve the interests of his country in the event an exchange of prisoners would be necessary.
The story shifts to an American air base in Pakistan where Powers and other pilots are being trained by the Central Intelligence Agency to conduct aerial observations over Soviet territory with U-2 spy planes, which are designed to fly at altitudes unreached by fighter jets.
In May 1960, Powers is shot down over Soviet air space and captured by the Russians. He’s convicted in a Soviet courtroom of espionage and sentenced to three years in prison with an additional seven years of hard labor.
Having been prescient in saving Abel’s life, Donovan is tapped once again into service, this time as a private citizen using the Soviet spy’s incarceration as a bargaining chip to seek the release of Francis Gary Powers.
Leaving home on the false pretense of a fishing trip, Donovan ends up in Berlin, risking his life in the Russian sector to negotiate with stereotypical East German and Russian functionaries.
When East German street thugs steal his overcoat, Donovan ends up with a bad cold and runny nose which only fuels his desire to make a quick deal so he can return home to the comfort of his own bed.
But such desires are complicated by the fact that during the construction of the Berlin Wall, an American student is captured by the East Germans and accused of spying. The student’s capture sets more hurdles in the negotiation process.
As Donovan shuttles back-and-forth between West and East Berlin, he witnesses the terrifying and brutal nature of the Communist regime gunning down East Germans trying to escape to freedom by scaling the Berlin Wall.
Witnessing the barbarity of the East evidently pushes Donovan to insist that there would be no deal for Abel unless the student is also included in the swap with Powers. Some of the CIA handlers object, only wanting to get Powers back.
The tension builds as Donovan is put in the uncomfortable position of having to deal with the Russians and East Germans, whose interests don’t always neatly coincide as one would expect of these allies.
And so it comes to pass that a predawn exchange on Glienicke Bridge is fraught with great tension as the Soviets and Americans meet with their respective captives, and Donovan holds out until the East Germans hold up their end of the bargain.
“Bridge of Spies” is a terrific thriller made all the more exciting because Tom Hanks once again plays the Everyman to perfection in a role that only someone like Jimmy Stewart could have once played.
History buffs, in particular, should find this Steven Spielberg film an immensely satisfying and absorbing real-life espionage tale that makes for great Cold War melodrama.
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.
Here is a poem by David Ray, of Arizona, that gets to the subject of how a person moves ahead following the death of a loved one.
For a time, the simplest activity can feel both strange and new.
His most recent book of poetry is When, from Howling Dog Press, 2007.
Widower
She took such good care of him that he seldom lifted a finger. So only now does he stand
by the sink and peel his first potato, with the paring knife she left as legacy. The potato,
he notes, fits the human hand, was made to do so, one of the miracles. She knew all along.
American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation ( www.poetryfoundation.org ), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. They do not accept unsolicited submissions. Poem copyright 2006 by David Ray, “Widower,” from Music of Time: Selected and New Poems, (The Backwaters Press, 2006). Poem reprinted by permission of David Ray and the publisher. Introduction copyright 2015 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Saturday, Nov. 7, at 7 p.m., the Soper Reese Theatre presents a special concert celebrating 1920s, 1930s and 1940s European and international café music, featuring the beautiful sound of the mandolin.
The Hot Frittatas, the headlining act, will deliver a concoction of classical and contemporary roots music from Spain, Italy, France, South America and Mexico, with waltzes, tangos, polkas, musettes, tarantellas and marches all performed with style and vivacity.
This Northern California group, including Lake County local Don Coffin, has played on National Public Radio and written music for “The Bachelor” TV series.
Opening for the Hot Frittatas is the Sonoma-based Haute Flash Quartet. The all-female group plays gypsy jazz, French musette waltzes and American swing with hard driving rhythms, lush vocal harmonies and lighthearted fun.
Reserved seating tickets are $20 for single seats at a table; $18 center Loge and $15 side Loge.
Tickets are now on sale at www.soperreesetheatre.com ; at the theatre Box Office, 275 S. Main St., Lakeport, from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; at The Travel Center, 1265 S. Main St., Lakeport, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday; or at the theater box office up to two hours before the show.
LUCERNE, Calif. – Northshore Community Center, formerly known as Lucerne Alpine Senior Center, is hosting its monthly Open Mic Lucerne on Saturday, Oct. 17, from 6 to 11 p.m.
Performers will be on stage with house band FOGG, which will start the evening at 6 p.m. with classic, heavy metal rock and roll with original numbers and covers of your favorites.
FOGG and other entertainers will wrap up the evening by 11 p.m. Assistance is available with amplification.
Bands and individuals are already signing up. Past events have seen full venues, so sign up early.
Call 707-274-8779 for your reserved time or come and sign up beginning at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.
Don’t miss this chance to showcase your talent. Being in the audience is great fun and free too.
Music, comedy, mime, readings, and any other activity that is family-oriented is appreciated. Room is also available for dancing and relaxing. There is no charge for attending or performing.
Bring the whole family to this child-friendly event.
At Open Mic Lucerne, a spaghetti feed is offered with traditional and vegetarian full meals available for $5.
All proceeds from dinner benefit the Northshore Community Center, a not-for-profit serving north shore families and senior populations with on-site lunches, Meals on Wheels, personal advocacy, activities and other services.
For more information about OML, call Northshore Community Center at 274-8779.
The center is located at 3985 Country Club Drive, Lucerne.
The Twin Towers of New York’s World Trade Center come to life again in “The Walk,” the story of a Frenchman’s surreal participation in an illegal activity that didn’t involve the worst strike on American soil since Pearl Harbor.
Apart from the horror of the 9/11 terror attack, let’s also not forget that World Trade Center was the target of terror bombings back in 1993.
Fortunately, “The Walk” is set in 1974, allowing director Robert Zemeckis to pen a love letter to the iconic buildings that then loomed large over the New York skyline.
On August 7, 1974, the day before President Nixon resigned from office, Philippe Petit, a French aerialist, surprised unwary passersby with a high-wire walk between the towers of the almost-completed and partially-occupied World Trade Center.
The story of daring wire walker Philippe Petit was documented in “Man on Wire,” a film released in 2008 and subsequently awarded the Oscar for best documentary film. Elsewhere, Petit’s act has been described, perhaps fittingly, as the “artistic crime of the century.”
An interesting take on why making a film about the seemingly impossible is director Zemeckis’ observation that when you watch a wire walker, “you always have to watch by looking up at him.”
“The Walk” affords viewers the point of view of Petit, wonderfully expressed here by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, a role that requires him to have a French accent that proves to be only minimally distracting.
Though the 3D presentation of “The Walk” proves to be spectacular and emotional, Gordon-Levitt’s Petit fulfills the director’s primary objective of what it’s like to be on the wire, and to be sure, the actual stunt is breathtaking.
But before the film gets to the scene of the “artistic crime,” the story begins in Paris with Petit riding a unicycle and performing stunts in the public square acting the role of a struggling busker.
Performing his circus act of juggling and walking on a rope strung between two trees, Petit was basically in the minor leagues until he met up with street singer Annie (Charlotte Le Bon), who became his girlfriend and partner in the eventual planning of the New York caper.
In many respects, “The Walk” is a caper film, with the heist target being the illicit act of making it up to the 110th floor of the Twin Towers with the necessary equipment and the heavy cable wires.
At first, it appears that Petit’s ambition is beyond his talents. His attraction to the Twin Towers comes from a newspaper article about the architectural marvel of what would become at the time the world’s tallest buildings.
Petit began doodling on the newspaper photo a line connecting the two towers, dreaming of a feat that would require him to seek out the help of Papa Rudy (Ben Kingsley), a circus performer with a lifetime of experience walking on the high wire.
After mentoring sessions with Papa Rudy, which include walking the wire under the circus tent without a safety harness and practicing in open fields, Petit assembles a team of cohorts to plan the New York adventure.
As time moves along, Petit becomes more immersed in American culture and the English language, even though his accent remains unmistakably foreign.
Serving as a framing device to capture the Twin Towers in the background, Petit narrates his thought process on moving forward with an ambitious goal from a perch on the Statute of Liberty, a landmark which in itself is the welcoming point for entry into America.
Aside from Annie’s dedication to his visionary yet dangerous aspiration, Petit finds a primary accomplice in his friend Jean-Louis (Clement Sibony), who has the responsibility in the pre-Internet age to document the event with still photography.
While picking up supplies at an electronics store in Manhattan, Petit and his team gain another accomplice in J.P. (James Badge Dale), who gets in on the action because, unbeknownst at first to the crew, he speaks French and understands their secret mission.
Once in New York, the story focuses on the planning stages of the caper, with Petit and his gang conducting undercover surveillance and scouting their options.
Petit dons a number of disguises, from construction worker to an office drone complete with the appropriate business suit.
Interestingly, and completely riveting, is the notion that the preparation for the act itself is like a reverse heist film. The primary objective is not to steal anything, but to put the cables and equipment in a secure and hidden place.
In real life, Petit’s high-wire walk, without a safety harness, took about 45 minutes. In “The Walk,” the timeframe is more condensed, and yet it fully captures the extremely perilous nature of this performance.
Petit traverses the wire between the two buildings not just once but many times, pausing occasionally to kneel down and at one point to recline on the wire.
If you don’t feel the emotional punch of watching this hazardous stunt, check to see if you still have a pulse.
The high-wire walk creates gripping tension and suspense, and as such “The Walk” is a technical marvel that demands to be seen in 3D. You can’t watch the climactic daredevil act without a feeling of shear dread or panic.
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.
