first time I saw this poster with the flags of the United States and the Soviet Union standing side by side, and I was very excited for a while (the U-2 reconnaissance plane incident is also a card in this board game). It must be an exciting duel similar to the board game "Cold War and Hot Fight", right? It must be a high-level spy film like "Tailor, Soldier, Potter, Spy"?
Hey, it turned out to be an American movie with the main theme and a story based on real history. I didn't know anything about this real history before, but I guess it wasn't an earth-shattering event. And it has a fixed character, a basic story line that has happened, and a determined ending (not necessarily the dramatic version the movie creator wants). The biggest difficulty in the adaptation of real history is the lack of drama.
Through this movie, Spielberg tells us how to make a boring story as good as possible. The real history has happened, so where is the biggest space for film adaptation? Characters. Although the context and ending of the story cannot be changed, whether the real character is introverted or extroverted, and what unique personality he has, is often not recorded in detail. Even if there is a record, drastic changes will not have much impact on the credibility of the story. This movie does exactly that. Grasping the fact that the Soviet spy is a painter, the film has shaped his extremely calm and introverted personality, from the portrait of himself in the opening to the recurring mantra "Would it help?" Good impression.
The second focus is to connect with the big history as much as possible and arouse the audience's memories and resonance, and the big history is often very dramatic. The U-2 reconnaissance plane incident and the exchange of prisoners are the focus of the narrative, but it has also managed to connect with other landmark history. Arranging the arrest of the college student by the Berlin Wall linked the story with the construction of the Berlin Wall, the shooting and killing of overpassers by the East German police, and so on. Historically, this university student was not caught near the Berlin Wall. The shooting of the overpasser also happened after Donovan visited Germany. With the most backing of history, the next step is to polish the details of the plot. For example, the plot of Donovan being gangstered in East Berlin was added, suggesting the rebellion in East Germany and the insidiousness of the East German and Soviet authorities that instigated this incident. At the end of the hostage exchange, a detailed plot such as "If they hug me, I will be safe; if they directly let me take the back seat, I will be dangerous." Such a detailed plot made the audience sweat at the end.
The plot is enriched, and the last thing is to promote values. The Donovan lawyer played by Tom Hanks is the incarnation of the spirit of the American Constitution. Even the enemy should be treated as human beings in judicial trials. He pragmatically defended his client with a high level of professionalism and spirit. Although he lost the case in a strong wave of public opinion, he tried his best to protect the life of his client, the Soviet spy. He is not only professional in his clients, but also full of human care – he insists on returning students detained by East Germany together, not just the captured pilots who hold secrets that the US military is concerned about. He is also worried about his former clients. After returning to the Soviet Union, something happened unexpectedly. Of course, the ending caption tells us that in the real history, he was reunited with his family after returning to Suzhou and was safe and sound. It seems to be different from the drama we want, but it doesn't matter, the film stops abruptly in the back seat when he is not embraced. The real history is left to a few subtitles. At the same time, as the main theme, the position of the film is not one-sided. It is also critical of the US military’s inhumane order that U-2 pilots would rather die than become prisoners of war.
As for the style and texture of the painting, that has always been Spielberg's best. Most of the scenes in the film are in the cold winter and dark night, evoking memories of the Cold War that everyone is in danger.
Looking back at the whole movie, it seems that there hasn't been any earth-shattering event, and the theme is still so, although there are not many surprises, but it looks pretty good? This is the skill of the adaptation.
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