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Thirteen Days | Year: 2000 Actors/Actresses: - Kevin Costner On The Brink In October 1962, the world came closer to nuclear extinction than it ever had before or would again. When a U-2 spy plane photographed the installation of Soviet ballistic missiles on the island of Cuba, the United States and its president John F. Kennedy were faced with a monumental dilemma: how to force the Soviets to withdraw the missiles without touching off World War III. That is the story ingeniously told in the terribly underrated political drama THIRTEEN DAYS, one of the best films of that type since ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN. Seen through the eyes of JFK presidential adviser Kenneth O'Donnell (Kevin Costner), THIRTEEN DAYS is a fascinating look at the machinations that went on in the highest circles of power in Washington during that traumatic time known as the Cuban Missile Crisis. Bruce Greenwood, known prior to this for playing bad guys (DOUBLE JEOPARDY; RULES OF ENGAGEMENT), gives an extremely credible portrayal of John Kennedy, who finds himself caught between a rock and a hard place. On one side are the Joint Chiefs of Staff, led by staunch Cold Warriors General Max Taylor and Dean Acheson, pushing for an invasion and surgical strike against the missiles. On the other is the president's own conscience, for he knows that anything as rash as what the Joint Chiefs are leaning hard on could mean the end of life on Earth. Alongside Greenwood's sterling performance, Steven Culp portrays his brother Bobby Kennedy with the right tact and straight-forward believability. Costner's heavy Boston accent is not always credible, but this is only a minor flaw in his performance as Ken O'Donnell, which is otherwise quite good. A true standout performance is Michael Fairman's portrayal of UN ambassador Adlai Stevenson, a former presidential candidate and an old "political cat" who denounces the Soviet Union's stonewalling at the United Nations in front of the world--"Yes or No?! Don't bother to wait for the translation"; "I'm prepared to stay here until Hell freezes over, if that's what it takes!" David Self's screenplay is very cagily based on White House tapes, documents, and memos from that two-week edge-of-the-seat rollercoaster ride the human race had to endure. It all comes together under the crisp, taut direction of Roger Donaldson, who directed Costner in 1987's NO WAY OUT. Even though it is a rather long film at 146 minutes, it plays like Great American theatre, the kind that Hollywood has somehow left behind in its rush for big bucks. Like any film drama based on real events, besides the slight fictionalizations, a person's knowledge of these events might make THIRTEEN DAYS predictable. But the reason these kinds of films work is not so much the end result as to finding out how the end result was achieved. That is the real triumph of this movie, and why it ranks very close to ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN, in my book. A compelling drama Whatever else you might say about Kevin Costner I don't think even the most cynical of critics could deny that he does make exceedingly good politico-dramas and is a very good character actor, providing the characters all have similar traits. I have to concur that he is not the most naturally expressive person ever to be immortalised on celluloid but what he does he does well. From Elliott Ness in the Untouchables via John Dundee in Dances with Wolves and Jim Garrison in JFK to Kenny O'Donnell in Thirteen Days, Costner portrays four men with very single-minded, driven characters. They are not necessarily likeable but they are all intriguing and very captivating. The film is based upon the actual events surrounding the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, at the height of the Cold War and probably the most politically turbulent period since World War Two. This powerful docu-drama reveals the character of the Kennedy's as they really were, men of determination and compassion, not just the darlings of the nation. In many respects I wish that this movie had been released prior to JFK, sort of a part one of the story, as it provides significant insight as to the cause of the subsequent Kennedy assassination in the following year. Not only does Thirteen Days give you a stage by stage account of events but also conveys the feelings of terror that must have been felt by all involved. The thought of being responsible for potentially destroying humanity is one that chills me. The strength that JFK and Co. showed during this time, when his Joint Chiefs of Staff were baying for Russian blood after the Bay of Pigs fiasco, deserves the highest accolade and recognition, as does this account of those events. It is a film that would probably be even better digested second-time round, after having been given time to ruminate on the all the political events which occurred during this period This movie shows how a man of peace and genuine concern for the common man, regardless of how he lived his personal life, was almost unknowingly manipulated into an unthinkable situation and who suffered the ultimate retribution as a consequence of his convictions. Anyway, enough of my political rantings. There have been a number of truly magnificent films that have been released recently and this, for me, is one that can rightfully sit at the top of the pile and stay there for a long time to come. It will definitely be added to my home cinema collection when it is available. Boring I saw this film in a history class I was taking and it definitely was not viewed for the sake of accuracy, more as a comparative piece to an actual historical documentary and I must say I found the documentary of still pictures Buy Thirteen Days at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Thirteen Days Search with the Priority Search Engine on Thirteen Days This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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