Operation Mincemeat (3 Stars)

Operation Mincemeat was an elaborate scheme carried out by the British intelligence services in 1943. Britain intended to invade Sicily, but it was being defended by German troops. False documents were written detailing British plans to invade Greece, which were planted on the body of a corpse dressed as a fictitious naval officer, Major William Martin. The corpse also carried a love letter and other personal effects to make him look genuine. The body was dumped from a ship off the coast of Spain, where it would be washed to the shore.

At the time Spain was officially neutral, but it was under the influence of Germany. It was expected that the body of a British officer would attract attention from German agents. To intensify this, Britain sent officers to Spain to say that the major's attaché case should be returned as quickly as possible. When the case was returned, there was evidence that the documents had been opened.

The operation was successful. That's not a spoiler, that's history. German troops were withdrawn to fortify Greece's defence. When British troops invaded Sicily they only had to fight smaller German resistance. It's estimated that the deception saved the lives of ten thousands of British soldiers.

Before going to the cinema, I read that "Operation Mincemeat" had received high critical acclaim. I shouldn't believe everything that the critics say. I found the film boring. It's a talkie. The film lasts two hours, and most of the film is spent with the intelligence services discussing the plans and possible setbacks. Very little happens until the last 15 minutes. A subject matter like this would be better presented as a documentary, not as a war drama.