June 6, 1944. Even those who didn’t do very well in history class will probably recognize that date. It was, of course, the day the Allied forces launched the largest seaborne invasion in recorded history with the goal of liberating France and driving the Nazis back from the Western Front. June 6, 1944, was D-Day. It wasn’t always supposed to be, though. As chronicled in the new movie Pressure, the choice of which date to commence D-Day on was a point of contention up to the very last second. In fact, according to Pressure. the decision of when to launch the military operation that would determine the ultimate outcome of World War II likely hinged on a single weather report.
Before it gets to that point, however, the film begins with General Dwight D. Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser) surveying the devastation left behind by Exercise Tiger, the D-Day training exercise that went horribly wrong when American troops were accidentally bombarded with live ammunition. Eisenhower’s only response is a single expletive, but you can tell by his face that the rows of dead bodies lined along the beach will weigh heavily on his mind in the days to come.
From there, we switch to the more serene home of Captain James Stagg (Andrew Scott), the chief meteorologist for His Majesty's Armed Forces. Reluctant to leave the side of his wife Liz (Tamsin Topolski), who is ready to give birth to their first child at any moment, Stagg nevertheless must answer the summons to report to the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF) where he is to consult with Eisenhower for reasons not yet revealed to him. Once at the base, Stagg’s frustration at being forced to leave his wife at this moment is more than apparent in his manner, but these feelings are nothing compared to the pressures he is about to experience.
Eisenhower gives Stagg a deceptively simple assignment, to tell him if the weather will be favorable enough to launch D-Day on June 5. This is a reasonable request, as the weather conditions must be within certain parameters or the mission will fail horribly, resulting in the likely loss of the entire war. The problem is, should D-Day be delayed by even a few days, the Nazis will doubtlessly learn of the invasion in advance and take the necessary steps to defend against it, resulting in the likely loss of the entire war. In short, Stagg’s prediction must be spot-on accurate to ensure the future of the free world.
The most current atmospheric data leads Stagg to believe forming storms will not only make a June 5 launch unfeasible, but perhaps any launch within the next two weeks as well. There are complications involved in making that call, though. One is Irving Krick (Chris Messina), Eisenhower’s preferred meteorologist, who has up to now had a 100% accuracy rate. Krick bases his assumptions on a 50-year study of weather patterns, and those patterns say the 5th is the ideal time to begin. Eisenhower is inclined to trust Klick, but wants Stagg’s input to ensure another Exercise Tiger will not happen. The other is British Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery (Damian Lewis), head of the allied forces and second in command only to Eisenhower. Weary of the costs Britain has paid in the war, Monty insists that D-Day must commence on the 5th no matter what the weather will be, as any potential losses will be justifiable. He appeals to Stagg’s patriotism to give the go-ahead despite what the data says. As if all that weren’t enough stress, Stagg learns the night before he must deliver his report that the hospital his wife has been admitted to has been bombed by the Germans and there is no word if Liz survived.
Perhaps the best trick that Pressure manages to pull off is the escalating tension in its narrative despite the fact that the outcome of D-Day is well-established in history books. A large part of this is thanks to the performances of its two leads. As Stagg, Andrew Scott is the epitome of the stoic Scotsman, but his subtle body language and facial expressions convey a growing anxiety the audience can feel emanating from the screen. As for Brendan Fraser, he adds another winning role to his resume. His Eisenhower is a man haunted by the demons of past failure, but one who also unfalteringly accepts the final decision to commence D-Day lies with him, and he will not hesitate to make it when the time comes. That said, he desperately needs the information provided to him to be correct, and you can sense the crushing weight of uncertainty bearing down on him.
As with any historical drama, Pressure plays fast and loose with some of the truths in its true story, consolidating many characters into a few and altering minor details for dramatic purposes. Most notably, the contributions of Norwegian meteorologist Sverre Petterssen, a major participant in the actual events, are completely left out in favor of elevating the role of Stagg. Still, what remains is a gripping tale of disparate people gathered under tremendous stress, yet united with a common goal of saving humanity from a dark evil. All they have to do is withstand the pressure and find a way to work together to find the truth. As the quote so often attributed to St. Augustine goes, “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”
Pressure opens in theaters on May 29, just in time for the 82nd anniversary of D-Day.
