The story begins in London, 1941, with the Special Operations Executive trying to find ways to infiltrate agents into France where they can work to disrupt the German occupation. Vera Atkins (Stana Katic) persuades her boss, Maurice Buckmaster (Linus Roache), she can recruit women who will be able to do the job as effectively as men, and it's two of her recruits that the film concentrates on.
Virginia Hall (Sarah Megan Thomas) is an American with a wooden leg, Noor Inayat Khan (Radhika Apte) a Sufi pacifist. Both will spend time in France, working with the Resistance, and dodging the Gestapo, with Hall excelling as an organiser, Khan as a wireless operator. There's plenty of tension, lots of action, and a picture of how confusing and terrifying their lives were emerges. While the anti semitism in Vichy territory comes as no surprise, it also pervades the British organisation, with Atkins struggling to get the recognition she deserved.
Based on a true story, the film ends with text showing what became of the real life characters, 13 of the 39 female spies dropped in France being killed in action. This is a decent enough attempt to reflect their achievements, although presented somewhat confusingly, with scene piled upon scene making the individual storylines hard to follow. But there's tension aplenty in both France and London, and some honesty in showing how incompetent the SOE could be at times. Katic is excellent as the stressed and discriminated against Atkins, while Thomas delivers a properly flawed and human hero.
For all it's defects it's an enjoyable movie and one that deserves a wider viewing for bringing attention to these brave women.
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