Thirteen Days Review
By Joe Lozito
Cold War Games
Movies have enough trouble generating suspense with fiction, let alone with a context in which the outcome is so well known. Few historical dramas, like "All the President's Men" and "Apollo 13", have succeeded where so many others have failed. "Thirteen Days," Roger Donaldson's Cuban Missile Crisis docudrama, succeeds not only as history but as a thoroughly exciting film. Ironically, the tagline of the film is "you'll never believe how close we came," but this movie is so well filmed, written and acted, that you have no trouble believing everything that happens on screen.
The cornerstone of the film, like the crisis itself, is John F. Kennedy. And, as portrayed in a complicated and understated performance by Bruce Greenwood, the President comes to life before your eyes. Mr. Greenwood, who is best known for his work in Atom Egoyan's canon of films and the unfortunate "Double Jeopardy", does not look or even sound much like President Kennedy. Bringing the former and much-beloved President to life is a daunting task for any actor, but Mr. Greenwood chooses wisely to boil off the President's most imitated characteristics and concentrate on the man himself. His John Kennedy is an introspective, stressed out, diplomat stuck in one of the most turbulent political times in world history. And it's clear that you don't want his job.
By telling the story through the eyes of the Special Assistant to the President, Kenny O'Donnell (Kevin Costner), President Kennedy remains slightly at arms length as a presence of great power and charisma. Though Mr. Greenwood makes you feel each decision he must make, the real success of his performance lies in the fact that you are not always on his side. As O'Donnell, Mr. Costner takes some time warming up into what starts out as a ridiculous New England accent. Throughout the film, however, his character is a fine thread and he keeps the audience close to the action. Attorney General Bobby Kennedy (Stephen Culp) rounds the triumvirate of power well, and Mr. Culp brings just enough of the younger Kennedy's renown "ruthlessness" to the role.
Mr. Donaldson is forgiven for recent lapses like "Species" and "Dante's Peak" as he brings to mind his wonderful 1987 espionage thriller "No Way Out" (also with Mr. Costner). He assembles a sprawling ensemble of character actors to create a full and complete image of those two weeks in October of 1962. His most ingenious device is to film certain scenes in black-and-white and washed out color. The result not only lends the film the feeling of a documentary, but it also aids in making the occasional stock footage feel less jarring.
Mr. Donaldson and his fine ensemble are only occasionally let down by the script by David Self(The Haunting), which seems to favor confrontational shouting matches over subtlety. Also, the Russians are more or less a faceless enemy, but this most likely true to the feeling of the time. However, the script and the film are not anti-communist. There is a wonderful and moving moment during which O'Donnell, waiting for Bobby Kennedy to make one last ditch offer to the Russian Ambassador, makes a silent connection with the Ambassador's wife seated across the waiting room. More than any speech about humanity or soaring musical crescendo (of which the film has many), this small wordless scene speaks volumes. The film is clearly American-made, but not patriotically so. No character is shown to have all the answers and, even in the end, the feeling is more of relief than of triumph - a crisis narrowly averted thanks to a few good men and one great film.
