Bridge of Spies (2015)
TOMATOMETER
AUDIENCE SCORE
Critic Consensus: Bridge of Spies finds new life in Hollywood's classic Cold War espionage thriller formula, thanks to reliably outstanding work from Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks.
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Movie Info
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Cast
as James Donovan
as Rudolf Abel
as Mary
as Thomas Watters
as Roger Donovan
as Hoffman
as Vogel
as Agent Blasco
as Judge Byers
as Allen Dulles
as Carol Donovan
as Agent Williams
as Doug Forrester
as Reporter (uncredited)
as Justice Warren
as Francis Gary Powers
as Agent Gamber
as FBI Agent
as FBI Agent
as Bates
as Receptionist
as Alison (Donovan's Secretary)
as Joe Murphy
as Lynn Goodnough
as Peggy Donovan
as Police Officer - Brooklyn Courthouse
as Lie Detector Test Administrator
as Pilots in Motel Room
as Pilots in Motel Room
as William Tompkins
as Agent Somner
as US Pilot
as Bailiff
as Crying Girl
as Classroom Boy #1
as Classroom Girl #1
as Gentleman on Subway #1
as Classroom Girl #2
as Classroom Boy #2
as Classroom Teacher
as Teacher
as Secretary on Subway
as Gentleman on Subway #2
as Older Lady on Subway
as Clerk
as Foreman
as Millie Byers
as Man in Courtroom
as Courthouse Reporter
as Courthouse Reporter
as Courthouse Reporter
as NYPD Lieutenant
as Radio Newscaster
as Angry NYPD Cop
as Marty
as Partner at Watters Law Firm
as Soviet Judge (Powers' Trial)
as Soviet Translator
as Frederic Pryor
as Family #1 at Berlin Wall Construction
as Family #1 at Berlin Wall Construction
as Family #1 at Berlin Wall Construction
as Construction
as Construction
as Construction
as Katje
as East German Soldier #1
as East German Soldier #2
as East German Soldier #3
as Mr. Michener
as Pinker
as Prison Official
as Checkpoint Soldier #1
as Checkpoint Soldier #2
as Checkpoint Soldier #3
as East German Youth
as East German Youth
as East German Youth
as Soviet Embassy Receptionist
as Helen Abel
as Lydia Abel
as Cousin Drews
as Ivan Schischkin
as Soviet Guard
as Soviet Guard
as Soviet Guard
as 2nd Soviet Interrogator
as Soviet Main Interrogator
as Soviet Director/Official
as Michael Verona
as Checkpoint Guard #1
as Checkpoint Guard #2
as East German Guard (Pryor)
as East German Guard (Donovan)
as Hilton Waitress
as Harald Ott
as Ott's Secretary
as Agent Faye
as CIA Agent (Glienicke Bridge)
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Critic Reviews for Bridge of Spies
All Critics (269) | Top Critics (50) | Fresh (245) | Rotten (24) | DVD (2)
Bridge of Spies is a heart-on-its-sleeve affirmation of American values -- not in the loaded contemporary sense of the term, but in the way the country was founded on values we have to work and fight to abide by.
Authentic re-creations of the period, including duck-and-cover clips about a nuclear holocaust that frightened young students, serve as a reminder of a time, not unlike our own, when the threat of terror kept a steady and disturbing beat.
Spielberg and Charman frame Donovan as a thin bulwark against the American government's attempts to work around its own supposed ideals at the height of the Cold War.
Bridge of Spies connects Cold War paranoia to today's terror. That's a bridge worth building.
When a film is as enjoyable as this one, its timing so sweet, and its atmosphere conjured with such skill, do you really wish to register a complaint? Would it help?
Rylance's performance is particularly interesting as he infuses Abel's dry understatements on his predicament with just the right dose of quiet irony.
Audience Reviews for Bridge of Spies
An American lawyer goes to Cold War era Berlin to negotiate a hostage exchange. Tom Hanks and Mark Rylance, who surprisingly won Best Supporting Actor, lead this cast in a decently tense Cold War thriller. While it's true that the relationship between Donovan and Abel is underdeveloped, there's enough in this film to make their connection believable. And the plot moves slowly but surely. Spielberg, however, has no restraint in his message. The film is about American exceptionalism and the primacy of American Values (never mind the fact that several other countries share similar values). Yes, there are token "Bad Americans," but seen especially in a pair of scenes in which Germans attempting to climb a wall are killed and Americans attempting to climb a wall are safe (and not shot by police), the film pounds us over the head with just how wonderful we are. Without getting into a disagreement about the validity of Spielberg's point, we can simply say that the film lacks subtlety. Overall, there's a decent film here even if it's heavy-handed in parts.
Super Reviewer
Steven Spielberg. Tom Hanks. Period piece. Sound familiar? I mean, it definitely is, but this film from the dynamic duo proves to be more than meets the eye. Based around the true story of Brooklyn insurance lawyer James B. Donovan taking on the case of reputed spy Rudolf Abel, the story is set among Cold War tensions at their height, shortly after the Rosenberg trial. Tasked with helping Abel gain constitutional rights against a country at arms with the Soviets, it is a film filled to the brim with intelligent discourse and a penchant for reflective empathy. Read more at bluefairyblog.com
Super Reviewer
An intriguing behind-the-scenes negotiation during a heightened period of danger, Bridge of Spies relies upon its history to do the heavy lifting and it's plenty enough for a handsomely made, reverent, and engaging legal procedural that's also hard to muster great passion over. Tom Hanks is again a noble everyman, this time an insurance lawyer, James Donovan, called in to defend a mild-mannered Russian spy (Mark Rylance) captured during the Cold War. Things get even more complicated when spy pilot Francis Powers is shot down over Soviet airspace. The movie's civil liberties arguments are pretty clear and still applicable to our modern era, but the movie becomes exponentially more interesting once Powers is captured and Donovan travels to Eastern Berlin to negotiate a prisoner swap while trying to work three sides, the Americans, the Russians, and the Eastern Germans who were hungry for legitimacy. It's during these back-and-forth negotiations and posturing that the movie really hits its stride, pulling incredible facts together while forcing our protagonist to be the world's greatest poker player. It's the details of this story that makes it feel more fulfilling from spy techniques to the new life on the other side of the Berlin Wall. The acting is robust and Rylance (TV's Wolf Hall) makes a strong impression in a role that requires him to be cagey to a fault. Hanks is his usual determined, inspirational self, which plays all the right emotions in a way that still feels expected and a little boring. Bridge of Spies is a slighter Steven Spielberg affair, a good story well told with good actors but a movie missing essential elements to plant itself in your memory. It's a fine movie but sometimes fine is just not enough, and considering the talent involved in front of and behind the camera, I expect better. Nate's Grade: B
Super Reviewer
Bridge of Spies Quotes
| Ivan Schischkin: | This is not an equitable trade, sir. |
| James Donovan: | But what you're saying is, if Powers has given up everything he knows then Moscow would trade? Why wouldn't they? As for Abel, if he dies in an American prison, the next Russian operative who gets caught might think twice about keeping his mouth shut. And you never know, Abel might want to see the sky again and decide to trade Russian secrets for small American favours. |
| Ivan Schischkin: | How can we know this? We little men. We just do our jobs. |
| James Donovan: | Like Lieutenant Powers. He's just a pilot. |
| Ivan Schischkin: | He was making photographs from 70,000 feet when he was shot from the sky. People in my country consider this an act of war. |
| James Donovan: | We have to get off this merry-go-round, sir. The next mistake our countries make could be last one. We need to have the conversation our governments can't. |
| Ivan Schischkin: | I will ask Moscow. Who knows what they will say. There are a lot of people, Mr. Donovan, who doesn't want this exchange to ever take place. |
| James Donovan: | We have to have the conversations our governments can't. |
| James Donovan: | Aren't you worried?... |
| James Donovan: | Aren't you worried? |
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