Halfway through the film, I remembered I had seen it before. That was when Costner called the pilot if the surveillance plane and told him that, whatever happened on that forthcoming flight, he will not be shot at, did he understand that? Yes, Sir, I will try to be careful. No, you don’t understand… whatEVER happens… Very good scene, actually, and a shame about those sparrows hitting the plane and making a couple of dozen 11 mm holes on the wings. A strong scene, you have to give them that. That whole film is a bit undecided whether it wants to be really hard-hitting and gulp-inducing about what’s happening during the Cuba missile crisis, or whether it wants to stay with on Hollywood road to joy and try to cash in some millions without really stepping on anyone’s toes. It has both, and well, appparently the former is more interesting than the latter. The film is more cinematic than comparable produce like JFK, and relies more on the drama of the moment than on the speculation about the background. That means that the end (as ends do in real life all too often) is more like air out of balloon rather than big bang showdown, but as substitute for the showdown you get a well-done buildup for the decisive confrontation of the diplomats during a Security Council (I think) session.
All in all, for me more a history lesson than a film event, but I love well-made documentaries, and assuming in a way it is just that it was a very entertaining and edutaining watch.
thomas4cinema 