Inspired by real events, “Bridge of Spies” provides Tom Hanks with his best opportunity to wear classic American hats since he spent all of 2002 celebrating them (“Catch Me If You Can,” “Road to Perdition”). It also fits comfortably into director Steven Spielberg’s fondness for old-fashioned takes on history (the dull “Lincoln” and awful “War Horse”) and sentiments of fatherhood (insert almost any Spielberg movie).
It’s 1957, and to his surprise Brooklyn insurance lawyer James Donovan (Hanks) gets tasked with defending Rudolf Abel (a droll Mark Rylance, and I never call anyone droll), an accused Russian spy at a time when you very much do not want to be charged with being a Russian spy. Even the judge says things like, “God willing, he’ll be convicted,” which speaks volumes about how much people in power at this time care about giving American rights to outsiders. And if there’s one thing we can never have enough of, it’s tales of Cold War-era paranoia.
Without giving too much away, Donovan soon must attempt to exchange Abel with an American pilot (Austin Stowell of “Whiplash”) who has been shot down by the Soviets, the lawyer later trying to pull an unlikely two-for-one like a guy insisting on happy hour specials hours after the bar has closed. The script, adjusted by Joel and Ethan Coen (“The Big Lebowski,” “No Country for Old Men”) from Matt Charman’s draft, has some fun with the comic potential in this unusual story but feels somewhat like a tamer “Burn After Reading,” the Coens’ far funnier and smarter exploration of dubious actions by the CIA. Last year the Coens also co-wrote Angelina Jolie’s disappointing “Unbroken.” Maybe the brothers should stick to directing their own stuff and avoid movies about people getting shot out of the sky.
The slow-moving “Bridge of Spies” gets mileage out of its commitment to integrity as a fiercely American principle, seen through Donovan’s nobility in the face of hypocrisy. Yet his character’s a dry source of purity that, as the husband and father begins to feel protective over Abel and another American captured in Eastern Europe, moves earnestly among one-note characters that offer no surprise. Meanwhile, the often-light tone (“How did you lose your coat?” “You know, spy stuff.”) overplays running jokes and clashes with an international procedural that feels far too soft and nice to be credible. (I know it’s only “inspired” by fact, not based on it, but still.) Spielberg and Hanks made a great movie about retrieving someone serving his country (“Saving Private Ryan”). And that tally still stands at one.
2.5 stars (out of four)
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