The superb historical drama Pressure is a study in high-stakes decision-making. Few human endeavors had higher stakes than the Allied invasion of Europe, upon which hinged millions of lives, the liberation of formerly free nations, and the defeat of the fascist and racist Nazi regime (whose worst crimes were yet to be publicized). And, after all the planning and investment in resources, the success of that invasion came down to secrecy and a weather report, made by human beings.
History’s most massive amphibious invasion would be logistically difficult and cost many lives, no matter how well things went. But it would certainly generate horrendous casualties and possibly even fail, if the Allies lost the element of surprise. The allies had gone to extraordinary lengths to mislead the Germans about the location of the D-Day landings. This spiderweb of secrecy, deception and misdirection couldn’t be maintained forever, and the clock was ticking.
While the Allies needed to launch D-Day as soon as possible, they also needed to wait for the right conditions. The landing required high tides and low-enough waves for landing craft, a moon-lit night for the airborne forces, along with good visibility and a high ceiling for air support. Missing the window for the moon and tides, would mean a two-week delay – with the threat of the secrecy unraveling.
One man held the responsibility for the critical decision of when to deploy – General Dwight D, Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser). Eisenhower’s decision would pivot on the weather forecast by the British meteorologist British Captain James Stagg (Andrew Scott). Pressure is the harrowing moment-by-moment story of the crushing weight of this decision.
This is a true story, and Pressure is remarkably historically accurate. Some details are streamlined, but the truth of what happened is maintained. I fact-checked the two elements in the story that I wasn’t familiar with, and they turned out to be factual. As is the case with the best history, the historical events are humanized.
Director Anthony Maras co-wrote the screenplay with David Haig, based on Haig’s play. In his second feature, director Maras distills a complex story and maintains a blistering pace – only one-hour-and-forty minutes.
Brendan Fraser accurately captures the cauldron that Ike operates in, always burdened by the most immense responsibility, while being sniped at and undermined by rivals. Fraser’s Ike maintains control – and the appearance of control – while constantly second- and third-guessing himself.
Likewise, Andrew Scott is excellent as the apparently humorless Stagg, who kept his eye on the science despite overwhelming pressure to come ip with a more desirable answer. There were no weather satellites in 1944, and Stagg had to get a handle on the future volatile weather by manually tracking real-time reports from various weather stations in the North Atlantic. Scientists like Stagg don;t give final reports with 100% certainty, and Eisenhower had to act decisively despite that. (I had the experience of helping to make important public health decisions during the COVID pandemic; political and military leaders are comfortable making decisions based on, say, 75% certainty, while doctors and scientists often refuse to be definitive unless they have 100% proof.)
Despite overwhelming pressure to do otherwise, Stagg had the balls to stand firm with his scientifically-informed forecast, no matter how unpopular. (I related to Stagg, having, many times in my own real-life career, told very powerful people what they did not want to hear, even in the presence of pandering sycophants.)
Kerry Condon is excellent as Kay Summersby, Ike’s driver and personal assistant, and essentially his work wife. Condon just keeps showing up in movies with yet another distinctive performance (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Ray Donovan, Better Call Saul, The Banshees of Inisherin, Train Dreams). This time she brings a historical character to life, and, once again, she’s one of the best elements of a movie.
Similarly, Damian Lewis nails the supreme confidence and insufferable narcissism of Field Marshal Bernard “Monty” Montgomery. Montgomery was incapable of being a team player, and his arrogance and disloyalty is depicted here.
I saw Pressure with The Wife, who is generally not a fan of war movies, and she was absorbed in impressed by the film. Pressure is now in theaters.
