Colin Firth has starred in his share of war films, including Sam Mendes’ 1917, and now he’s taking on another with Operation Mincemeat. Believe it or not, the title, which sounds like something out of a horror movie, is based on an actual plot by the Allied forces during WWII to disguise their invasion of Sicily. The scheme involved planting fake evidence of a mission on a dead body made to look like a fictitious Royal Army commander. It’s the stuff of movies, for sure, and now it is one.
Firth plays British naval officer Ewen Montagu, who came up with the plan. He’s joined by Kelly Macdonald, Matthew Macfadyen, Penelope Wilton, Jason Isaacs, Tom Wilkinson, Simon Russell Beale, and Johnny Flynn as James Bond creator Ian Fleming who was a prominent naval officer himself. The late Paul Ritter also makes his final screen performance.
The film is directed by John Madden, best known for Shakespeare in Love and The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Michelle Ashford, who wrote acclaimed HBO war series The Pacific, penned the screenplay so you know this film is incredibly well researched.
Operation Mincemeat opens in the UK in January 2022, with a stateside release through Netflix to follow.
