In the 82 years since D-Day, there’s been no shortage of Film and TV portrayals of the Normandy landings. However, what has largely been eclipsed is the tale of Chief Meteorological Officer James Stagg, who is famed for convincing General Dwight D Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser) to push back the date of the Allied invasion due to his bad weather prediction. Director Anthony Maras oversees a moving and relentless portrayal of these men tasked with bearing the weight of Operation Overlord in his new movie, Pressure.
In a nail-biting retelling of Stagg’s work at Southwick House, the film, adapted from David Haig’s 2014 play, makes use of artistic license, condensing months of Stagg’s research into a chaotic 72-hour window – and it’s a decision that pays off. Anchoring the film is BAFTA winner Andrew Scott, who well and truly makes every second count. Embodying the abrasive and straight-talking weatherman, Scott softens Stagg’s edges, capturing the essence of a man driven by science, as an emotional storm rages inside him.
Unafraid to ruffle a few feathers, Scott’s Stagg finds a worthy sparring partner in US meteorologist Colonel Irving P Krick (Chris Messina). Providing some welcome moments of levity, the actors flex their comedic muscles in biting back-and-forths between the rivals. However, as they disagree over their methods and findings, it’s Fraser’s arresting performance as General Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force, that casts a sobering shadow, reminding the audience what’s really at stake.
Haunted by Exercise Tiger (a D-Day rehearsal that saw over 700 American servicemen killed), Fraser taps into Eisenhower’s relentless fear of failure. Like a volcano on the brink of eruption, one minute he’s exploding at British Army General, Sir Bernard Montgomery (Damian Lewis) for undermining him, and the next he’s a pillar of stone-cold stoicism.
While Pressure isn’t an action-packed World War II epic – nor is it packaged as such – what it does offer is plenty of heart, and it’s Kerry Condon as Eisenhower’s private secretary, First Lieutenant Kay Summersby, that serves as its very soul. A certified scene-stealer, Summersby is the pressure valve of the piece. As a confidante to both Stagg and Eisenhower, she’s the one who brings them back down to earth when they’re clouded by chaos. “Did you know that weathermen are traditionally a little boring?” she jokes to Stagg. Turns out, there’s nothing boring about this story.
Pressure lands in UK Cinemas September 9.
