Six Minutes to Midnight

Greetings again from the darkness. I never cease to be amazed at the number of stories connected to WWII that translate so well to cinema. This one comes from director Andy Goddard (known mostly for his TV work) and his co-writers Eddie Izzard and Celyn Jones, and takes place in 1939 England, just prior to Germany invading Poland to start the war. The story was inspired by true events.

Augusta-Victoria College for Girls was located in Bexhill-On-Sea, and served as a finishing school for the daughters of the German elite from 1932 through 1939. We open as the school's English teacher, Mr. Wheatley (Nigel Lindsay), frantically flees when he realizes his undercover mission has been discovered. An artistically filmed sequence on the boardwalk ends with Wheatley missing and his bowler floating off on the horizon. We don't know yet what he uncovered, but Thomas Miller (co-writer Eddie Izzard) is quickly hired as the new teacher by Headmistress Miss Rocholl (Oscar winner Dame Judi Dench).

Teacher Ilse Keller (Carla Juri) puts the girls through their robotic lessons and ensures they listen to Nazi propaganda on the radio. Of course, as in most spy thrillers, no one is as they seem - or at least most aren't. Most of the girls seem indistinguishable from each other, save for dark-haired and bespectacled Gretel (Tijan Marei), who is a true outcast. The girls are referred to as the "Hitler League of German Girls" and are being educated and groomed for the planned new socialist nation.

It doesn't take Miller long to uncover a plan, and almost immediately, he's wrongly accused of murder - sending him on the run. It's no spoiler to reveal that Miller is part of British Intelligence, and in the role, Izzard delivers a more restrained performance than what we are accustomed to (see OCEAN'S TWELVE and OCEAN'S THIRTEEN ... and it's very effective. James D'Arcy as Captain Drey enters about halfway through, as does his partner Corporal Willis (played by co-writer Celyn Jones). This offers us a bit of cat and mouse between Drey and Miller, and they are joined in the fun by Charlie the bus driver, played by the always interesting Jim Broadbent.

The plan to evacuate the girls before the war seems a bit overly complicated, but then my experience planning such war time strategy is admittedly non-existent. Still, the lead characters and the setting make this intriguing enough, and cinematographer Chris Seager certainly has some fun with camera angles. For those hooked on all things related to WWII, it's likely a story you haven't heard much about, if anything. From IFC Films, SIX MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT opens March 26, 2021.

Pretty predictable but okay to fill in an afternoon. Probably be a family type movie for older ones. No sex or swearing! Limited violence.

Quite believable.

I though Eddie Izzard was surprisingly good in the leading roll ,and the story just got on with things . Definitely worth a watch . Who doesnt like seeing nazis plans scuppered.

After reading some reviews I went into this film a little hesitantly with pretty low expectations, however I was pleasantly surprised with the story telling and acting is very good.

Plot moves along at a good pace with a few decent twists - all in all a decent film with good acting and enjoyable to watch.

My Review - Six Minutes to Midnight

My Rating 7/10 Six Minutes to Midnight is a 2020 British war drama film directed by Andy Goddard from a screenplay by Goddard, Celyn Jones and Eddie Izzard, starring Izzard, Judi Dench, Carla Juri, James D'Arcy and Jim Broadbent.

I enjoyed Six Minutes to Midnight mainly for Judi Dench's performance and the effective music score by Marc Streitenfeld .

Eddie Izzard and Celyn Jones wrote the story set in a boarding school for German girls just before the commencement of The Second World War .The story is loosely inspired by the real-life Augusta Victoria College, located in the also real-life coastal town Bexhill-on-Sea (county of Sussex, south-east to England).

The establishment is under surveillance by the British secret service, and the film follows the attempts by a British agent (masquerading as a school teacher) to uncover a plot to repatriate the pupils and discover what happened to his predecessor, who has disappeared.

I thought the female cast held this film together especially Judi Dench casting as Miss Rocholl the Principle of the boarding school and Carla Juri as the Head Teacher Ilse plus all of the 20 young girl students were well cast special mention of Maria Dragus cast as Astrid the Class Leader.

I was less impressed by the male cast including Eddie Izzard who is cast as Thomas Miller the Agent posing as a school teacher . No spoilers but I would have preferred Actors of the caliber of Ben Whishaw or Benedict Cumberbatch in this important role. James D'arcy as Captain Drey I thought was almost melodramatically comedic at times in his performance.

I kept thinking this is a story Alfred Hitchcock would have Directed far better and very differently to Andy Goddard .

Judi Dench now 86 years old and very vision impaired amazes me with her aptitude for remembering lines and even more for her dedication to any part she plays . There's a scene where she realises what's happening and not a word is spoken but all is conveyed in her facial reactions.

Six Minutes to Midnight for me had a great beginning and conclusion but got a little off track somewhere in the middle but it's well worth a look.