We all know bad weather has the power to wreck plans, but it's a little different when those plans involve the most pivotal operation in World War II.
The new film Pressure, out Friday, recounts this little-known piece of WWII history.
Andrew Scott stars as Capt. James Stagg, the meteorologist tasked with forecasting the weather for D-Day. When he realizes that a storm is on its way to derail the Allied Forces’ plans for the massive seaborne invasion, he must deliver the bad news to Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, played by Oscar winner Brendan Fraser. Together, they need to find a way forward or risk losing the war — and with just 72 hours to make a crucial decision, the pressure is a lot more than barometric.
“Who doesn't want Brendan Fraser yelling in your face?” Scott jokes of their tense scenes together.
“I love the fact that they're two quite formidable characters, but in very, very different ways, from very, very different cultures, who ultimately have a great deal of respect for each other, and a great deal of humility about their position in the world and what their duty is,” he tells ABC Audio.
Scott adds that it’s moving to see two people who wanted to do the right thing by the world rather than peacock their own achievements.
It was a quality Fraser came to admire about future U.S. president Eisenhower and how he ultimately humanized such an imposing historical figure for the film.
“The things that were important to me that I grew to admire about Eisenhower were his ability to listen to people rather than just hear them and also that he took accountability for the choices that he made,” Fraser says.
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