The Courier (Amazon Prime)

The Courier  (Amazon Prime)

October 16^th, 1962 was my 11^th birthday and the start of the Cuban Missile crisis. We were watching Walter Cronkite and on TV and there was a map of the United States with arrows pointing to cities targeted by nuclear missiles launched from Cuba.  New York City was in the bull’s eye. I remember saying to me mother I was too young to die. The Courier is the true backstory of the Cuban missile crisis. Benedict  Cumberbatch plays Greville Wynne an unassuming Englishman who gets recruited by MI6 and the CIA.  Cumberbatch gives a riveting performance in this tense spy thriller. It has the feel of a John le Carre novel but it is true. Cumberbatch plays a middle class businessman with just the right accent and not too stiff posture. He is convinced by his handlers as a courier he would not be in much danger if something went wrong. Spy tradecraft in 1962 was elementary compared to today but the depictions  in the film authenticated the period. Using a Minox camera and a hollowed out can as a drop off to pass on material was the state of art at the time. The duplicity of espionage is one man’s hero is another man’s traitor.

The arch of Cumberbatch’s character goes from ordinary businessman to reluctant spy to a man of heroic conviction. Cumberbatch’s transition is masterful. Not to give too much away at one point he loses a tremendous amount of weight which  portrays his terrible situation. It is almost hard to watch.  

The supporting cast is excellent. Merab Ninidze plays Oleg Penkousky a Soviet military intelligence colonel. He plays the role of a conflicted Soviet hero who is patriotic but troubled by the recklessness of Nikita Khrushchev’s path to nuclear war. Ninidze is a native Georgian which fits perfectly with his role. Rachel Brosanhan (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) plays Emily Donovan the CIA officer. Her role was more empathetic to the mission and concern for Wynne’s welfare. To match the period her hair was perfectly coiffed fortified with layers hairspray and she wore a  pillbox hat.

The casting director should receive an award for casting Keir Hills as Wynne’s young son. His resemblance to Cumberbatch is striking with blond hair and long mirthless face. The typical English schoolboy of the 60’s.

This October will be my 70^th birthday which I hope will be uneventful.