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Operation Mincemeat, adapted from the best-selling book by Ben Macintyre, has landed on Netflix today. The Colin Firth drama is a spy thriller where Firth plays the role of the hardened Ewen Montagu, an MI5 agent who headed the Operation Mincemeat, employed by the British to divert Nazi forces from the shores of Sicily.
The film is a dramatization of actual events during World War II when the British intelligence unit had hatched a scheme to derail Nazi plans with a high-risk diversionary tactics. Directed by John Madden, the spy-drama stars Colin Firth, Kelly Macdonald, and Penelope Wilton in the lead roles.
Operation Mincemeat is a little all over the place
Operation Mincemeat follows the highly-secret and dangerous mission that the British Intelligence undertook in 1943 to convince the Nazi regime that Britain planned to invade Greece rather than Sicily, which would throw Hitler off the tracks and allow Britain to get ahead in the war. The scheme involved planting fake documents on a corpse dressed as a British Marine who the German army would find.
Although the story of the mission is quite linear and exciting, the script for the movie seems to be all over the place. While collating several diverging plots into the main story, director John Madden sometimes loses sight of the film's motive. As a result, the film feels like a handful of ideas and events almost forced together within two and a half hours and pushed down the spectator's throat.
Given the bizarre incidents that the film tried to dramatize, the lack of drama in the script was only too apparent, which led the two-and-a-half hours to feel a little stretched at some points. The absence of excitement and intrigue, which is the essence of any espionage drama, is lacking in Operation Mincemeat. The story feels tiresome and sometimes overbearing, especially with its endless subplots that are pointlessly distracting.
The attention to detail sees the film through
But this is not to say that the film had no thrilling points whatsoever. When it turns to focus on the elements of the operation and how those involved hoped to pull it off despite the plan being ridiculous and dangerous, there is a certain level of excitement that keeps the viewer on the edge of the seat. Add to that the seriousness of the cast, who slip into their roles with utmost sincerity to deliver a gripping performance.
The most compelling scenes were around Ewen and Charles. They sought to make their plan foolproof by attending to every minute background detail concerning the decoy, the fictitious Naval courier, Major William Martin, who was planted with strategic military information meant to derail the Nazis.
This began with the aid of the staunch director of the Admiralty’s secretarial unit, Hester Leggett. The team worked around the clock to get a dead body that would pass off as drowned and then organize the mission before the body decomposed while synchronizing their efforts with a submarine sailing from Scotland, which would release the body.
Every minute detail of the plan had to be worked through, from preparing the corpse's military documents and identification papers to making the decoy look original by planting personal possessions like photographs, love letters, and even the receipt for an engagement ring. This is where Operation Mincemeat derives all its thrill and excitement, which is what sees the film through.
A romantic twist for added color
A spy thriller may sometimes become a little monotonous. The solution Madden brought to it was to drop a love triangle including Ewen Montagu (Colin Firth), the Jewish Naval officer who headed the operation, his associate, the former flight lieutenant Charles Cholmondeley (Matthew Macfadyen), and a desk clerk by the name of Jean Leslie (Kelly Macdonald), who was heavily involved in the mission. The two men developed feelings for Jean; a romantic subplot introduced to the movie.
As the widowed Jean grew closer to Ewen during their late nights in the office, jealousy sparked in Charles's heart. Godfrey then used the latter to spy on Ewen because Ivor was a suspected Communist sympathizer. The dramatic plot injected into the thriller makes for a refreshing break from all the technicalities of an operation.
Overall, Operation Mincemeat is an exciting watch, and all credit goes to the cast, especially Firth and Macdonald, who have done a terrific job at bringing to life the spy thriller and brightening up the screens with their impeccable chemistry. Catch the movie now on Netflix.
