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In the 1960s, Cold War tensions between the US and the Soviet Union were running high. As both countries grew their nuclear arsenal, the threat of nuclear war grew, too. And the real-life spy thriller The Courier tells of an ordinary businessman who was recruited to help prevent nuclear disaster.
The Courier stars Benedict Cumberbatch as London-based salesman Greville Wynne. When a top Russian intelligence officer, Oleg Penkovsky (Merab Ninidze), sends an urgent message to the American Embassy, offering his assistance in restoring peace, the CIA contacts MI6 to move forward with a plan to make contact. So they enlist the help of Wynne, an unassuming businessman with no government ties, to travel to the Soviet Union to help Penkovsky deliver information back to London. But with each mission, he risks raising suspicions in the ever-watchful Soviets.
As Wynne plans his first trip to Moscow, he’s assured that everything will be relatively simple. He’s just another businessman attempting to do business in a foreign country. He won’t be a part of any of any sensitive discussions; he’s just a courier, making connections and passing information. But he soon discovers that his mission is anything but simple—because the Soviet Union isn’t just any foreign country. Penkovsky teaches him the basics of tradecraft: to assume that he’s always being watched, that rooms are always bugged. And that adds plenty of Cold War tension to simple business meetings, casual dinners with colleagues, and even returning to his hotel room at the end of the day. Anything, it seems, can pose a serious threat to Wynne’s safety.
The suspense definitely builds with each meeting—and Wynne becomes increasingly anxious and on-edge. Wynne and Penkovsky build a strong working relationship, connecting for meetings and spending time together after business hours. The film offers a fascinating look at these two countries, their cultures, and their lifestyles—as well as the political climate of the time. And as these two very different men—the stone-faced Russian operative and the common British businessman who’s in over his head—get to know each other, viewers will build a connection to them, too.
More than just a tense Cold War thriller, The Courier tells an intriguing true story of two men who were determined to do their part to bring peace to their countries—and to the world. It isn’t always an action-packed film, but it’s often hold-your-breath suspenseful.
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