Jan 12, 2001 he functions in the movie as a useful fly on the wall, a man free to be where the president isnt and think thoughts the president cant. Featured content includes commentary on major characters, 25. He is depicted as a remarkably cool, thoughtful, nonhysterical, selfpossessed leader, aware of the weight of. The analyses reproduced below were originally published in 2001 to mark the release of thirteen days, a film about the events of october 1962 peter almond a coproducer of thirteen days, graham allison, and ernest may leading experts on the cuban missile crisis offer their opinions on the movies depiction of the crisis. Usaf u2 spy planes discover that the ussr is placing nuclear ballistic missiles in cuba. High esteem acheson advocated strongly and ears esteem acheson advocated strongly and strong advocate for his power to manage the white house, in cuba he denied the missiles in which was an early and also the americans had evidence of thirteen days, as he is depicted as his administration and programmatic advisers as well as the president of a nuclear weapons in charge. Thirteen days 2000, starring kevin costner and directed by roger donaldson, is a film that chronicles the decisionmaking of president kennedy and his excomm during the cuban missile crisis. An analysis of tracys environment contextualizes how larger social systems affect her.
Across the globe, people anxiously awaited the outcome of a harrowing political, diplomatic and military confrontation that threatened to end in an apocalyptic nuclear exchange between the united states and the soviet union. A lot of people probably think what the girls did in the movie was. The most controversial assertion of roger donaldsons thirteen days, an. Kennedys appointments secretarywho would be played by the movies headliner, kevin costneri had strong misgivings. In his article criticizing the accuracy of the movie thirteen days call days what you will, but its not quite history, jan. It is a reasonably disturbing film about the liminal moment between girlhood and womanhood and the contingency of it all. K and his two closest advisers and friends, secretary kenny o donnel and attorney general robert kennedy, enter. Thirteen days is a 2000 american historical political thriller film directed by roger donaldson. Jun 07, 2010 glenn closes character in fatal attraction was a bit of a caricature. Kennedy is a concise and gripping first person narrative about a significant period in or countries history. May, coeditor of the kennedy tapes the book on which the movie is based, said in the american prospect that the apparent rationale for making odonnell the main character in thirteen days was that he could serve as aninside everyman, evaluating the crisis almost as an ordinary citizen would. Thirteen days is a historical account of the cuban missile crisis. The movie is based on the days of the cuban missile crisis, and shows the perspective of the us political leadership, specifically special assistant to the president kenny odonnell, president john f.
Roger ebert of the chicago suntimes gave thirteen days a rating of 3 stars out of 4, and said the movie s taut, flat style is appropriate for a story that is more about facts and speculation than about action. Soviets offer to remove the missiles in exchange for the u. Kennedy and his advisers study highaltitude photos and intelligence reports, and wonder if khrushchevs word can be trusted. This study guide consists of approximately 41 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of thirteen days.
Check out our revolutionary sidebyside summary and analysis. Two perspectives on thirteen a film by catherine hardwicke, cowritten with nikki reed. Costner plays odonnell as a white house jackofalltrades, a close adviser whose office adjoins the oval office. And your man in the field, his family at home, couldnt even tell you the reasons why their lives were being sacrificed. The essay is based on the analysis of leadership as portrayed in the movie as well as some background study on the cuban missile crisis. Kennedy discovered the soviet union had installed nuclear missiles inside cuba. It dramatizes the cuban missile crisis of 1962, seen from the perspective of the us political leadership. In terms of risk factors, her family lives on the verge of poverty. For thirteen extraordinary days in october of 1962, the world stood on the brink of an unthinkable catastrophe. The chiefs of staff warn president kennedy and his cabinet that the missiles have the potential to kill up to 80 million americans, and destroy a large number of usaf bomber bases thus crippling the americans ability to retaliate and leaving the country an easy target for soviet invasion.
Since it was produced at a later date than many other films portraying the events, thirteen days was able to access recently declassified. Climax thirteen days at rotten tomatoes they settle on a step less than a blockade, which is formally regarded as an act of war. In 1997 i had transcribed and edited with philip zelikow of the university of virginia some of the tape. A memoir of the cuban missile crisis thirteen days. Fortunatly, kennedy and khrouchtchev kept cool heads and. After befriending the most popular girl at school, evie, tracys world is turned upside down when evie introduces her to a. It shows how jfks leadership saved the world from having world war iii wwiii, or worse, nuclear war. Kennedy the 35th president of the united states and the brother of the author, president kennedy is clearly the hero of thirteen days, as he leads the country to a peaceful resolution of the missile crisis. The movie thirteen days is 2000 docudrama and is directed by roger donaldson who is australian and tries to portray the film in a serious manor.
Thirteen days 2000, starring kevin costner and directed by roger. Analysis of thirteen days directed by robert donaldson good evening my fellow citizensthis government, as promised, has maintained the closest surveillance of the soviet military buildup on the island of cuba. Thirteen days is a look from within about the cuban missile crisis. Most of the time, he blends in with a large, capable cast of. The actors in thirteen days did a pretty good job of this. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides for challenging works of literature. As soviet ships with more missiles moved toward cuba, a u. Glenn closes character in fatal attraction was a bit of a caricature. The thirteen days movie describes how the 35 th president of united states of america usa, john fitzgerald kennedy jfk dealt with the cuban missile crisis during the period of october 1428, 1963. Whatever else kennedy and these other men may or may not have done, this was perhaps their finest hour, and the world owes them a debt of gratitude. Thirteen days is a dramatic, historical thriller in which the movie is showing what was going on during those nervous thirteen day, in which the united states c. Nikita khrushchev installed soviet missiles in cuba, 90 miles from florida and within striking distance of 80 million americans. Doc thirteen days essay michael d johnson academia. Thirteen days major character analysis supersummary.
Thirteen days after in john greens looking for alaska. If the threat of mutually assured destruction seems remote and antiquated today, it is at least partly because of the events dramatized in this film. Odonnell, with bruce greenwood featured as president john f. It is an account of the thirteen days in october of 1962. The film focuses on kennedy, his brother robert kennedy, and white house aide kenneth odonnell. Various characters are shown smoking throughout the film. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Kennedy went out and told the country that the soviets. There are two sides to this conflict which was played out in the postworld war ii era. Across the globe, people anxiously awaited the outcome of a harrowing political. The 35th president of the united states 196163, jfk faces two cuban. Odonnells son kevin, the earthlink millionaire, is an investor in the company of thirteen days producer armyan bernstein.
The movie thirteen days directed by roger donaldson is about the cuban missile crisis of 1962. These lines of criticism are, in my view, legitimate. I recently attended a th birthday party at which daughter and mother both seemed to be just fine, thanks, but it is hard to imagine a worse year than the one endured by the characters in thirteen. Thirteen million killed all because the militaries of both alliances were so highly attuned to each others movements and dispositions, afraid of letting the other guy have a theoretical advantage. Thirteen days 2000 cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Thirteen days recounts the events behind the scenes in washington dc in october 1962 when the soviets were discovered to be placing mediumrange missiles on the island of cuba where they could threaten much of the east coast of the united states. The united states learned that the soviet union was placing missiles with nuclear weapons in cuba. Watching thirteen, i remembered another movie with the same title. During this time many crucial events in united states. Leadership in the movie thirteen days essay 797 words 4 pages. Roger ebert of the chicago suntimes gave thirteen days a rating of 3 stars out of 4, and said the movies taut, flat style is appropriate for a story that is more about facts and speculation than about action. Kennedys appointments secretarywho would be played by the movie s headliner, kevin costneri had strong misgivings. Most critical commentary on the recent film thirteen has focused on the shocking realism of the film, the excellent performances of its cast, or on its failure to tell a compelling story. The film thirteen days, a hollywood account of the cuban missile crisis, purports to take audiences behind the scenes at the white house during the tense and critical period when nuclear war between the united states and the soviet union seemed not only possible but likely.
Thirteen days in 145 minutes the american prospect. After befriending the most popular girl at school, evie, tracys world is turned upside down when evie introduces her to a world of sex, drugs and cash. Thirteen days analyses cuban missile crisiscuban missile crisis. Suntimes film critic the two worst years of a womans life, writes nell minow, are the year she is and the year her daughter is. Such is the case with the movie thirteen, which should be subtitled, how to turn your teenager into a borderline without even being abusive.
Kevin costner stars as top white house assistant kenneth p. Thirteen days summary and study guide supersummary. Leadership in the movie thirteen days essay 797 words. The rest of the roles are handled by lookalike character actors, who are mostly excellent. Her mother, mel, divorced tracys father years ago and struggles to keep her family afloat, working as a hairdresser at home. Thirteen days doesnt add up by michael nelson, political science professor, rhodes college. Nov 07, 2001 w hen i learned that thirteen days, the new movie dramatizing the cuban missile crisis of 1962, would follow events through the eyes of kenneth odonnell, john f. Thirteen days is robert kennedys personal account of the cuban missile crisis. Williams thirteen 1997 tells the story of a yearold africanamerican girl named nina, who runs away from home and causes much concern for her mother, neighbors and the police before turning up again.
As the attorney general of the united states and presidents kennedys brother and most trusted confidant, robert kennedy played a significant role in that critical period. In thirteen days they wisely went with the proxy method. On october 14, a u2 spy plane overflight confirmed the presence of soviet missiles on cuba. Tracy is a normal yearold trying to make it in school. Thirteen days a classic movie illustrating leadership concepts. Kennedy includes detailed chapter summaries and analysis, as well as several more indepth sections of expertwritten literary analysis. They didnt have to make up too much for thirteen days, the movie that tells the story of the cuban missile crisis. Thirteen days is a gripping history lesson and a good character study, but also just a wellcast, wellexecuted film. W hen i learned that thirteen days, the new movie dramatizing the cuban missile crisis of 1962, would follow events through the eyes of kenneth odonnell, john f. Analysis of thirteen days directed by robert donaldson. Special assistant to president kennedy dealing with the cuban missile crisis. Thirteen days may seem like a movie script, but it really happened. Thirteen days is about how a few imperfect men more or less saved the world. Thirteen days april 20, 20 summary the movie thirteen days is based off of the real life situation of the cuban missile crisis that occurred back in 1962.
Step by step, robert kennedy gets us through those perilous days when a misunderstanding, a misstep could certainly have cause the end of mankind. Producer kevin costner plays a real person, kennedy staffer kenny odonnell, but the character combines the roles and actions of several people and essentially exists to help tell the story as efficiently as possible. The 1962 cuban missile crisis was the closest weve come to a nuclear world war. The film thirteen days, directed by roger donaldson, is the cinematic reworking of the events of october 1962, based on the may and zelikows book. Two perspectives on thirteen a film by catherine hardwicke. It is often referred to as a docudrama as it is very entertainment oriented but still remains close to the roots of what actually happened. A memoir of the cuban missile crisis outlines an important part of american history.
Thirteen days by robert kennedy thirteen days by robert kennedy thirteen days, by robert kennedy, is a portrayal of the drama surrounding the cuban missile crisis, and an analysis of the ordeal. Thirteen days tells this dramatic story from the perspective of kennedy political advisor kenny. This fast moving thriller reveals how incredibly close we all came to world war iii back in october 1962 after president john f. Over and over, miles jeopardizes his previously very strong relationship with the colonel in order to maintain his fantasies about alaskas death. Costner plays odonnell as a white house jackofalltrades, a. Although he was a longtime aide and trusted political hand, he had no where near the influence that costners character has. The audience always knows who the character is jfk, bobby kennedy, curtis lemay, etc. Thirteen days, directed by roger donaldson, is told from the point of.
The essay is based on the year 2000 released movie thirteen days which covers the entire missile crisis and the story is based on real life events. Such is the case with the movie thirteen, which should be subtitled, how to turn your teenager into a. But this is entirely forgivable, considering the necessity of a big role for superstar costner also a coproducer or this wonderful historical film might never have been made. Every so often, however, a movie comes out that absolutely nails a psychological phenomenon. The analyses reproduced below were originally published in 2001 to mark the release of thirteen days, a film about the events of october 1962 peter almond a coproducer of thirteen days, graham allison, and ernest may leading experts on the cuban missile crisis offer their opinions on. Within the past week, unmistakable evidence has established the fact that a series. The film focuses on john f kennedys appointments secretary.
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