The Gist:
With the threat of war looming, Scottish engineer Robert Watson Watt (Eddie Izzard) is under pressure to get develop his radar system that could save the lives of thousands. Meanwhile the British government wants to channel funding and resources into other areas if Watson Watt and his team can’t prove the worthiness of their invention.
The Review:
Firing the starting pistol in a long line of biopics about the great and good of British scientific endeavour, Castles in the Sky is a patriotic love letter to Watson Watt, whose invention would give Britain the edge against the German Luftwaffe in the Second World War.
It is also an interesting role for Izzard, who let’s face it has a mixed acting CV. Those who follow his comedy know that he’s an intelligent guy, and he uses this to good, understated effect here. Looking a bit like a hall of mirrors Ken Branagh and sounding like Mrs Badcrumble he builds his improbable team of anti-establishment, regional stereotypes to combat the Oxbridge elite who are anxious to step in and take over.
That Watson Watt faced so much opposition to his invention is shameful – Whitehall wanted to channel funds into a ‘death ray’. He remained underfunded and under resourced at a critical time.
Interspersing the film with footage from World War 2 serves to put a clock on the team’s endeavours. Cue scribbling on blackboards, montages and team bonding sessions.
Laura Fraser, as Watson Watt’s long suffering wife, also gets frustratingly little screen time.
The Verdict:
Director Gillies MacKinnon has brought out the best in Izzard and created a well-rounded drama but the Whitehall establishment is a little too stereotypically portrayed. Izzard plays Watson Watt with at first a childlike excitement and then an underlying sadness as the cost of potential failure weighs down upon him, knowing that either way he is losing the woman he loves.
Castles in the Sky is a rare thing, a war movie that does not rely on bloodshed, explosions or battles to tell its story. Rather, its battles are fought between intellect, class and the establishment. The subject matter though is fascinating and makes this a worthy story to be told.
Certificate: TBC
Director: Gillies MacKinnon
Starring: Eddie Izzard, Laura Fraser, Ian Kershaw
Running Time: 89 minutes
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