In Pressure, Brittain's Chief Meteorological Officer James Stagg (Andrew Scott), has 3 days to accurately predict the weather before D-Day during World War II to decide whether or not to postpone the invasion. He's under a lot of pressure from General Dwight D. Eisenhower (Brendan Fraser) and causes friction between him and General Bernard Montgomery (Damian Lewis) because he goes against the grain by predicting there will be a storm on that day. Kerry Condon plays General Dwight D. Eisenhower's aide, Kay. Writer/director Anthony Maras and his co-writer, David Haig, have made a gripping, captivating and intelligent psychological thriller with a terrific ensemble cast. The screenplay avoids stiltedness, clunkiness or unnecessary flashbacks, so Maras and Haig have a great handle on exposition. James has a wife whom he leaves behind and doesn't know if she's dead or alive because all he knows is that she's been sent to a hospital. Despite being mostly about weather forecasting, the plot actually manages to keep the audience engaged as the hours pass by before D-Day. James takes a pretty big risk for sticking with his convictions about the weather based on the information available---a risk not only for the troops who await the D-Day battle, but also for his own career which remains on the line. He gets repeatedly asked if he's 100% certain of his weather prediction even though that level certainty isn't realistic because he's not God. The most profound scene is when James and Kay have a discussion about weathermen vs the weather: weathermen can be boring, but the weather is far from boring, according to him. The way he explains it adds a lay of poetry and depth to the film. It's also interesting to observe the dynamics between him and Kay throughout the film and between Kay and the very domineering Eisenhower.

       To be fair, Brendan Fraser's performance is a bit hammy, so he doesn't quite match or surpass his more nuanced Oscar-worthy performance in The Whale. Andrew Scott and Kerry Condon are superb, though, and the same can be said for Damian Lewis, although seeing him in this after his comical role in Fackham Hall takes a while to adjust to. The production values are also impressive including the production design, costume design and lighting which provide both style and substance. Moreover, the music score doesn't feel intrusive or overbearing.  Maras uses silences effectively which means that he trusts the audience's emotions. Moreover, he keeps the film's running time under 2 hours without allowing any scenes to overstay their welcome, so that's a sign that he understands the concept of restraint and that less is more. At a running time of 1 hour and 40 minutes, Pressure opens in theaters nationwide via Focus Features.  It would be a great double feature with Conclave. 

 

       Time and Water is a mildly engaging and repetitive, but well-edited and occasionally mesmerizing documentary about Andri Snær Magnason, an Icelandic writer and poet. Director Sara Dosa sheds light on Magnason's relationship with his parents and the glaciers of Iceland that are melting because of climate change. Essentially, there are two interconnected films within this documentary. The one involving Magnason and his grandparents is less compelling than the one the footage of Iceland's glaciers. Magnason narrates the doc with his lyrical words, but, to be fair, the images speak louder than words. Did you know that there are funerals for glaciers? Did you know that glaciers make sounds? The fact that they're melting at such a fast rate is quite alarming and tragic. Although Time and Water serves as videographic and photographic evidence of the melting glaciers, it's not enraging enough or wide enough in scope to elevate beyond a by-the-numbers documentary. It's the kind of film that makes its point within the first hour and then repeats itself over and over. Perhaps it would've been more effective as a short, but as a feature length documentary, it overstays its welcome.  At a running time of 1 hour and 33 minutes, Time and Water opens at Angelika Film Center via National Geographic Documentary Films.   

Number of times I checked my watch: 2 




 

       With Hasan in Gaza is an immersive, timely, haunting and heartbreaking documentary about director Kamal Aljafari's search for his friend from prison back in 1989 The "Hasan" of the title refers to his driver, Hasan Elboubou. Shot over the course of 2 days in November of 2001, the film serves as a guided tour of Gaza before it was recently destroyed and as a quest to find someone's long-lost friend who may or may not be alive. How Kamal met his friend in prison and why he ended up in prison doesn't get revealed until later. Although much of the documentary is fly-on-the-wall without any voice-over narration, there's some on-screen text that provides much-needed exposition. Admittedly, though, at least a little bit of narration would've been beneficial to help keep the audience more engaged because some of the footage feels repetitive. At a running time of 1 hour and 47 minutes, With Hasan in Gaza opens at The Metrograph via The Cinema Guild.  

Number of times I checked my watch: 2