Trevor Nunn, the director of ‘Red Joan‘, had in his hands a huge story. He also had in the cast Judi Dench, a great actress in a role that seemed to have been written for her. The film starts very well, the first few minutes in which we see an old lady living a quiet life of retirement in Cambridge, just to become within a few minutes the main suspect of a half-century-old spy story, promises a thrilling continuation. Lindsay Shapero‘s script places for most of the movie the apparently respectable Ms. Joan Stanley in a MI-5 interrogation room remembering via flash-backs the story of her life, a story that combines love, war and betrayal. Unfortunately, from here, the movie that promises so much and so good disappoints in all respects.
The story of the infiltration of Soviet intelligence agents into the most selective circles of English society, in the secret services and in other British institutions has inspired countless books and movies. ‘Red Joan‘ starts in the same university environment (Cambridge in this case) contaminated by communist sympathies in the 1930s to focus on the world of the scientists who found themselves involved in military programs during the war, in competition with the enemies (Germany ) but also with the allies (the Soviets in the first place, but also the Americans). The case of the brilliant young woman physicist, attracted more because of sentimental reasons in the left circles, who at some point decides to influence the fate of the world from her relatively minor position, invites many interesting questions: What made these young idealists to get involved in activities which most of their compatriots considered as high treason? Why did they continue their activity after the masks began to fall and the fog of propaganda dissipated, making public the crimes committed by Stalin? What actually treason means when we place in balance the national interests on one side and the peace of the world on the other? Do scientists have the qualification, the right, or perhaps the obligation to take sides influencing peace or war on a planetary scale? All these are extremely interesting questions from an historical perspective, but also in the contemporary world. We can add to these a romantic story, which may hide a manipulation of sentiments for political purposes, and the very actual cinema theme of the role of women in a men-dominated world (that of science). All the premises for a fascinating film are here.
Unfortunately, none of these promises realizes, and none of the questions get an adequate response. Director Trevor Nunn chose to treat this whole story at the level of a routine espionage movie or series, moving from one subject to another, and addressing them all superficially. The characters have no depth, we do not find out anything credible about the motivation of betrayal. Not even the two actresses can help. Judi Dench is wasting her talent by making old Joan to look for the whole movie like an old lady in tears, while Sophie Cookson as young Joan struggles with the (non)-credibility of the character, and her make-up is similar the whole movie (making her look in her early 20s) although she traverses a period of about 12 years, including a world war, and a lot of dilemmas, crises and personal tragedies. Worse, the script is full of errors, from details to credibility gaffes that make the story unbelievable for informed viewers. ‘Red Joan‘ is a lost opportunity and a waste of talent.