So, I have chosen my Oscar winner! It's the Bridge of spies. Steven Spielberg has created yet another gripping thriller with some excellent cinematography thrown in.

Image from Google
Tom Hanks plays the lead role of an insurance lawyer based in America who is coerced into being the criminal defence lawyer for a Russian spy caught by US intelligence. This is set in the Cold war era , post world war 2 when espionage was common.
The general expectation from him is not to plead the case much so that the Russian spy loses the case and is given a death sentence. However Tom Hanks fights the case tooth and nail and gets the sentence reduced to a life imprisonment.
Meanwhile an American pilot who is sent to capture certain photos of sensitive areas in Russia is captured by the Russians. Also an American student studying in Germany is caught by East Germans while he stealthily moves in for West Germany to East Germany without proper papers.
Tom Hanks is then sent to Germany to negotiate with the Germans and the Russians to release the 2 Americans in exchange for the Russian spy. He is able to do that even though the other side talks tough.
For me the high point of the movie was the brilliant creation of the aircraft crash scene where the airforce pilot ejects from the plane once it is hit by a missile. That was some brilliant cinematography. Another ace by Mr Spielberg!
The reasons why I like this movie so much are:
- It's based on a true story
- It has a historical element in it. It captures the friction between USSR and USA during the Cold war era and also the division of Germany into East and West Germany
- It portrays how innocent people are sacrificed for bigger national interests. How the so called spies are driven into espionage by intelligence agencies and helpless they are on being captured by the enemy.
- Great acting by Tom Hank and the rest of actors in the movie.
- Gripping thriller. It never slows down even once in the movie.
- Tells a story about a humane lawyer who can understand the individual and his desires (the Russian spy) rather than being driven by nationalities and patriotism.
