Pressure

Based on a true story, this is a war film without much much in the way of war action in it (there's a bit at the end, but we already know what's going to happen!). But there is tension aplenty, and some excellent performances to keep the attention.

A few days before the Allied invasion of Europe, Churchill sends Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser) Britain's best meteorologist, James Stagg (Andrew Scott), to provide the most accurate forecast of likely weather conditions for the chosen day. Which is 5th June.

Stagg is intense, demanding, and not much of a 'people person'. He has personal worries as his wife is about to give birth. But he's also something of a weather genius, pioneering new methods of prediction and bringing greater accuracy to forecasts. He immediately clashes with the American's top weatherman, Colonel Krick (Chris Messina) who says the weather will be perfect on the 5th, but uses old fashioned methodologies. The man in command has to choose between them.

Adding a bit of softness to all this machismo is Kerry Conlon as Ike's PA, who provides the emotional link between Eisenhower's calm authority and Stagg's clipped expertise. Hollywood has these needs...

We all know that Stagg was right, the 5th would have been a disaster, and he correctly identifies a window in the weather on the 6th as being suitable. But the script does a good job of maintaining the tension, thriller style, over the path leading to the outcome. If you want a repressed middle aged man then nobody does it better than Scott, while Fraser delivers the epitome of soft power. There's a lot to admire.

There's not much in the way of depth, or anything to provoke fresh thought, but as a hundred minute entertainment it's more than acceptable.