A film about a previously classified Top Secret mission from World War II starring the Cineworld Unlimited advert’s Johnny Flynn? Time for a tasty debrief with Operation Mincemeat.
It’s 1943. The Allies are determined to break Hitler’s grip on occupied Europe and plan an all-out assault on Sicily, but they face an impossible challenge – how to protect a massive invasion force from potential massacre. It falls to two remarkable intelligence officers to dream the most inspired and improbable disinformation strategy of the war – centred on the most unlikely of secret agents: a dead man.
John Madden’s war movie surmises that the most effective weapons in World War II were not bombs and guns but subterfuge, deception and espionage. This is a film where the conflict and action takes place not on the battlefield but in stark offices and smoky bars.
The truth is stranger than fiction. The plan involves floating a dead body carrying fake military plans into the enemy’s hands. Everyone, including Churchill, admits the plan is unbelievable and implausible. However that is precisely why it could and ultimately has to work.
As well as a thriller based on a true war story, as a bonus, viewers are treated to a James Bond origin story. Johnny Flynn plays Ian Fleming who provides much of the story’s narration whilst working away at a typewriter. When asked what he is writing, he replies “spy story”. Clearly the mission inspired the world’s most famous spy. A visit to the Quartermaster sees Fleming fascinated by a watch that is also a buzzsaw.
The film is certainly not as action-packed or globe-trotting as a Bond movie. However Madden does an excellent job of wringing every drop of tension out of the situation. The audience will find themselves unexpectedly gripped by the mission and find themselves holding their breath along with the characters as they await a coded message.
It helps that driving the story, Mr. Darcy and Mr. Darcy are the masterminds behind the wheel. Firth and Macfayden deliver their stiffest upper lips and are unlikely heroes that are easy to root for.
If there is one wrinkle that threatens to derail the mission, and the film, it is the romantic subplot. It is completely unnecessary as it is only there to create a love triangle and sow the seeds of distrust between the two men. Also it disappointingly portrays the woman in the team as the weak link that could sink the mission.
Operation Mincemeat does not go gently into that good night. The Argo of World War II is able to overcome the obstacles and avoid the pitfalls in its way to spin and enjoyable and entertaining yarn.
Operation Mincemeat is in cinemas from April 15
Rating: 
Director: John Madden
Stars: Colin Firth, Matthew McFadyen, Kelly McDonald, Johnny Flynn, Jason Isaacs
Runtime: 136 minutes
Country: UK
