Main Cast: Andrew Scott, Brendan Fraser
Director: Anthony Maras
You might think we’ve seen movies about all the major events from WWII. You’d be wrong. Sometimes what seems minor is decidedly not. In Pressure, we learn how the success of D-Day hinged on the opinions of two…meteorologists.
Andrew Scott stars as Scottish meteorologist James Stagg. He is brought into the preparations for D-Day by Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser) to lead the British team making forecasts for the appointed date.
Stagg immediately butts heads with the American team lead, Colonel Irving Krick (Chris Messina), who is absolutely positive his forecast is correct. Stagg vehemently disagrees.
What ensues is a battle of wills, methods, and confidence with the lives of thousands of soldiers and the hopes of ending the war on the line.
Pressure is not an action movie. It isn’t a traditional war movie, either. It’s a film about strategy, the heavy weight of responsibility, and the crushing pressure (see what I did there) to be right when everything is uncertain. A combination of fabulous set design, a tightly written script, and wonderful performances makes the whole far greater than the sum of its parts.
Andrew Scott may be best known to American audiences as Hot Priest from Fleabag, but he is an accomplished dramatic actor, with dozens of film, TV, and stage roles going back to 1995. He is introverted, serious, and has little patience for the rest of his team as James Stagg, a man singularly dedicated to his work and very aware of the cost of his opinions.
Fraser is a very good Eisenhower. It’s a hard role to play. This man has been portrayed so many times by so many talented actors that it’s hard to rise above. Fraser isn’t the ultimate Eisenhower, but he is talented enough to give the man some depth when in would have been easy to play a caricature.
Chris Messina is superbly annoying as the America meteorologist Krick. Extravagently arrogant and condescending, he is outwardly the opposite of Stagg. But when they clash, it’s apparent that neither suffers a lack of conviction.
The best part of Pressure is the tension it builds. We know what happened on D-Day. Some of us even remember exactly what date it took place. It doesn’t matter. We don’t know this story and the impact it had on life-and-death decisions and ultimately, on history. Pressure didn’t make a huge amount of noise. Understandably, as it’s a pretty esoteric aspect of a much larger story. But it’s very, very good at telling that story in a way that’s both captivating and accessible. I highly recommend this hidden gem.
Sue reads a lot, writes a lot, edits a lot, and loves a good craft. She was deemed “too picky” to proofread her children’s school papers and wears this as a badge of honor. She is also proud of her aggressively average knitting skills. TV and indie movies are her jam.
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