Tag: Con O’Neill

Posted in 2020-2029, Film Review

Pressure (2026)

Posted on by Martin: Through the Silver Screen
© Working Title Films and StudioCanal

Pressure – Film Review

Cast: Andrew Scott, Brendan Fraser, Kerry Condon, Chris Messina, Damian Lewis, Con O’Neill

Director: Anthony Maras

Synopsis: In the days leading up to D-Day, the Allied forces are faced with a critical decision to launch the invasion of German-occupied Europe or delay it because of adverse weather conditions…

Review: Weather dominates the lives of almost everyone on Earth, to the point that “what’s the weather going to be like?” is almost certainly a daily conversation in households worldwide. This is especially true in Britain, where the weather can be extremely unpredictable. Met Office research conducted last year showed people in the UK spend, on average, 56.6 hours a year talking about the weather. It is easy to see why, when the weather affects numerous aspects of our lives, including what clothes we wear when we head out and whether our plans for the day can go ahead. Or, as Anthony Maras’ gripping historical drama demonstrates, how accurate weather forecasts changed the course of World War II.

June 1944, the Allies are making the final preparations to launch the invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe, otherwise known as Operation Overlord, under the command of General Dwight D. Eisenhower (Fraser). The failure of Exercise Tiger, one of the rehearsals for the D-Day landings off the Devonshire coast, which resulted in 749 American soldiers losing their lives, weighs heavily on the minds of the Allied leaders. Determined to ensure the operation’s success, Eisenhower calls in meteorologist James Stagg (Scott) and appoints him Chief Meteorological Officer, tasking him with predicting the weather for the invasion scheduled for June 5. Stagg and his team quickly determine that two storms are heading for the English Channel, which would make conditions extremely hazardous and urge Eisenhower to delay. This puts Stagg directly at odds with Irving Krick (Messina), the US meteorologist, who uses historical weather patterns and predicts clear skies. The pressure riding on this decision is monumental, with not just reputations at stake but the fate of the war itself, as launching the invasion in adverse weather would be catastrophic for the Allies’ hopes of victory.

Adapted from the play of the same name by David Haig, images of men in a war room poring over and forensically studying maps and weather data suit the stage well, but sound dry and monotonous on the big screen. But with Haig and Maras both on screenplay duties, the play translates into a compelling, gripping work. Through extremely unsettling imagery that demonstrates the horrors of Exercise Tiger’s failures, and the wider historical context of the Normandy landings and their significance in shaping the course of the war, the stakes could not be higher. Even though they work for the same side, the contrast in methods between Stagg and Krick creates tension that could be cut with a knife as the hours pass before the all-important decision of whether the invasion proceeds or is delayed.

It is very reminiscent of 2014’s The Imitation Game, where the battles are not on the front line but instead are fought by people working meticulously around the clock to crack the “unbreakable” Enigma code. In this case, the battlefield is deciphering isobar charts to predict the completely unpredictable enigma that is the British weather. Much like that film’s protagonist Alan Turing, Stagg keeps a stiff upper lip when questioned and berated by both his US counterpart and the commanding officers he serves, not just Eisenhower but also General Montgomery (Lewis), who emphasises the need for urgency so the Allies can strike while the iron is hot. Yet Scott imbues Stagg with resolute steeliness and unwavering conviction in his forecasts. He is categorically uninterested in being liked and will not budge, even under intense scrutiny from his fellow meteorologists and the military’s top brass.

Fraser, always an enigmatic presence whenever he’s on screen, is a metaphor for the oncoming storms, a powerful and menacing force of nature you would not dare to cross under the best of circumstances and could very easily get swept away if you crossed his path. Despite his thunderous presence, he allows key moments of humanity to ground him. He is like everyone else in the building, working under the most intense and time-critical circumstances, and must wrestle with the consequences if he gets this hugely significant decision wrong. Amid a room full of male bravado and egos, Kerry Condon as Eisenhower’s secretary, Kay Summerby, is the calming presence needed to keep those egos in check and a reassuring figure of support for Stagg, as he is away from home right before his wife is about to give birth.

With every detail of every weather map studied and scrutinised, everything comes to a head when the Allied forces decide to launch the operation. This is what everyone has spent day and night working towards. Maras’ direction shifts up a gear when the perspective switches from the war rooms of Southwick House to the beaches of Normandy, bringing the ferocious, unforgiving intensity the Allied soldiers faced as they landed, with enemy fire relentlessly raining down on them. The filmmaking can feel a little conventional, but this can be forgiven since the film depicts a fascinating piece of history that might not be so well known to audiences. Weather conversations are a familiar part of modern-day life and the film pays the perfect tribute to those brave scientists and meteorologists who staked their reputations and the fate of millions of soldiers on the most important forecast in the history of the 20th century.

Taking the mundane subject of weather and crafting it into a compelling slice of historical drama, anchored by another powerful performance from Andrew Scott, Pressure pays tribute to those unsung scientific minds whose accuracy and precision shaped the course of World War II.

 

Posted in 2010-2019, TV Review

Chernobyl (2019)

Posted on by Martin: Through the Silver Screen
Image is property of HBO

Chernobyl – TV Miniseries Review

Main Cast: Jared Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Emily Watson, Jessie Buckley, Paul Ritter, Adam Nagaitis, Con O’Neill, Adrian Rawlins, Sam Troughton, Robert Emms, David Dencik, Alan Williams, Ralph Ineson, Barry Keoghan, Michael McElhatton

Showrunner: Craig Mazin

Synopsis: An account of the events leading up to the nuclear disaster at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, and the subsequent fallout of one of the deadliest man-made disasters in history…

Review: As human beings, our lives can so often be irreversibly impacted by natural disasters. Though we are powerless to prevent them from happening, preparations can be made to mitigate the damage and devastation that they leave in their wake. It’s a stark contrast to the numerous man-made disasters that we have seen throughout history, which have also had similarly deadly consequences. However, when you look at how the events transpired, it’s hard to overlook the fact that someone was responsible for allowing these atrocities to happen and how they could have very easily been prevented. One such disaster, arguably the worst man-made disaster in history, is that of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant explosion. A tragedy of incomprehensible fallout, captured with horrifying realism in this tense and devastating HBO miniseries.

Over the course of five nerve-shredding episodes, showrunner/writer Craig Mazin and director Johan Renck explore the disaster and its horrific aftermath. Firstly, recounting the night of the deadly disaster and the catalogue of errors that led to the fatal explosion. Following on from that, looking at the attempts by the Soviet government to contain the fallout from the disaster. You watch with disbelief as they seek to prevent the already horrific situation from spiralling into something much worse, at times with shocking degrees of negligence and recklessness. Before ultimately trying to establish how such a nuclear catastrophe on this scale could have ever happened in the first place. At numerous points throughout the series, this feels more like a documentary. This is largely down to the expert production design, which recreates the power plant and the surrounding neighbourhoods, which feel remarkably authentic.

Irrespective of whether you’re coming to the series as someone who knows everything about the disaster, or if you know the barest minimum, Mazin’s scripts expertly combine informative scientific facts with intense and devastating drama. With each episode, it’s made painstakingly clear to us all as to the full extent of the horrific nightmare that was unfolding, enabling the audience to process just how an event like this could have ever happened. With the exception of a few artistic liberties, Mazin’s scripts faithfully recreate how events unfolded, and the excellent writing is brilliantly combined with Johan Renck’s masterful direction. Each episode expertly blends genres such as the intense drama and the traumatic horror of those who were the first to be affected by the radiation, to those who were recruited for some extremely perilous missions. Furthermore, the crackling sound of a dosimeter going haywire is so unnerving, it may well invade your nightmares.

With brilliant writing, combined with expert direction, and along with Hildur Guðnadóttir’s haunting score, every member of this cast delivers sublime performances. However, the three who shine the brightest are the three characters whose arcs are the pillars of this miniseries, the biggest of those belongs to Jared Harris, who is exceptional as Valery Legasov. Drafted in by the Soviet government to lead the efforts to mitigate the effects of the tragedy, he’s not afraid to speak up, and the people in charge just sweep everything under the rug. By his side, Stellan Skarsgard is equally tremendous as Boris Scherbina, a Minister whose relationship with Legasov is initially frosty to say the least. However, as the two men work closely together, to combat the scale of the disaster they’re dealing with, it strengthens their relationship immeasurably. Last and certainly by no means last is Emily Watson’s stirring work as Ulana Khomyuk. A composite character serving as the embodiment of the countless number of scientists who worked to uncover the full truth behind this unimaginable tragedy.

The show serves as a tribute to all those brave souls who risked their lives to prevent the catastrophe from becoming even more cataclysmic than it already was. However, the central theme that beats at the heart of this miniseries is the extremely damaging effect that lies can have when a country is in the grip of a catastrophic event like the Chernobyl disaster. In the wake of a deadly catastrophe that has wreaked unimaginable havoc, electing to cover things up with lies and misinformation may seem like a good idea at the time. However, as was the case with Chernobyl, these lies and misinformation came at a substantial cost, which is still being felt today. This is something that the governments of today could and should definitely learn from, especially at a time when a global health crisis of a very different nature is ravaging the world.

Sublime work from every aspect of the production ensures that this gripping and heartbreaking drama, like the disaster it depicts, will never be forgotten. An essential, definitive look at one of the worst man-made disasters in history.