In 1943, two British intelligence officers concoct Operation Mincemeat, wherein their plan to drop a corpse with false papers off the coast of Spain would fool Nazi spies into believing the Allied forces were planning to attack by way of Greece rather than Sicily.
Based of course on a true story, filmed long ago as "The Man Who Never Was", it turned out to be a deception which saved many Allied soliders lives, in the invasion of Sicily and turned the tide of the War.
Comparable to that other great deception that persuaded the Nazis that the D-Day invasion would be at Calais not at Normandy. As the film points out, sometimes the "Hidden War" (intelligence operations) can be just as important as the actual fighting.
Colin Firth and Matthew Macfadyen are terriffic, particularly when they’re on screen together, which thankfully is for most of this films runtime. A spy thriller that details an elaborate ruse to fool Nazi forces into believing an allied attack was imminent in Greece when in fact the planned attack would be in Italy. It’s the type story where the success hinges on a thousand different pieces going exactly right and as such the outcome is always balancing on the edge of a knife. At least it should. The tension never quite feels ratcheted up to the maximum. It’s a fascinating true story at any rate. If the unnecessary romantic side-plot had been removed altogether, I may have liked this even more.
A stolid production with too many winks at the viewer, an overblown antagonist, and a love triangle that adds distraction instead of tension.
Largely fictional, but based on an actual, amazingly bizarre operation. Ultimately, I'd rate this movie as OK. In my opinion, it suffers from trying to jam a love story where one does not belong. The result is a bit like spaghetti on the menu at McDonald's. Spaghetti is good, but it doesn't make any sense for it to be there, doesn't work with anything else on the menu, and adds little to no extra value.
While parts of this movie are great, the jarring, pointless love triangle is a constant distraction.
A thoroughly enjoyable historical drama telling the amazing background story of espionage and deception leading up to the Allied Invasion of Sicily in 1943. Colin Firth and Matthew Macfadyen (the guy that plays the pathetic son in 'Succession') along with Kelly Mcdonald (I fell in love with her watching Boardwalk) all had flawless performances with an absolutely perfect script.
It’s a really entertaining take on a true-story spy operation, with great performances and a nice old-school thriller vibe. The plotting is smart and keeps things moving, even when it gets a bit talky. The unnecessary love triangle definitely drags it down a notch, though. Still a solid watch.
Good Movie. .Based on a true story,all but the love story. 😊
Reviews
Operation Mincemeat
ርልዪረ reviewed
Operation Mincemeat
February 12, 2025Based of course on a true story, filmed long ago as "The Man Who Never Was", it turned out to be a deception which saved many Allied soliders lives, in the invasion of Sicily and turned the tide of the War.
Comparable to that other great deception that persuaded the Nazis that the D-Day invasion would be at Calais not at Normandy. As the film points out, sometimes the "Hidden War" (intelligence operations) can be just as important as the actual fighting.
Kevin Ward reviewed
Operation Mincemeat
July 11, 2025Colin Firth and Matthew Macfadyen are terriffic, particularly when they’re on screen together, which thankfully is for most of this films runtime. A spy thriller that details an elaborate ruse to fool Nazi forces into believing an allied attack was imminent in Greece when in fact the planned attack would be in Italy. It’s the type story where the success hinges on a thousand different pieces going exactly right and as such the outcome is always balancing on the edge of a knife. At least it should. The tension never quite feels ratcheted up to the maximum. It’s a fascinating true story at any rate. If the unnecessary romantic side-plot had been removed altogether, I may have liked this even more.
TomVader reviewed
Operation Mincemeat
June 6, 2026Largely fictional, but based on an actual, amazingly bizarre operation. Ultimately, I'd rate this movie as OK. In my opinion, it suffers from trying to jam a love story where one does not belong. The result is a bit like spaghetti on the menu at McDonald's. Spaghetti is good, but it doesn't make any sense for it to be there, doesn't work with anything else on the menu, and adds little to no extra value.
While parts of this movie are great, the jarring, pointless love triangle is a constant distraction.
Jason Layton reviewed
Operation Mincemeat
March 3, 2026A thoroughly enjoyable historical drama telling the amazing background story of espionage and deception leading up to the Allied Invasion of Sicily in 1943. Colin Firth and Matthew Macfadyen (the guy that plays the pathetic son in 'Succession') along with Kelly Mcdonald (I fell in love with her watching Boardwalk) all had flawless performances with an absolutely perfect script.
Zokkiie reviewed
Operation Mincemeat
February 8, 2026It’s a really entertaining take on a true-story spy operation, with great performances and a nice old-school thriller vibe. The plotting is smart and keeps things moving, even when it gets a bit talky. The unnecessary love triangle definitely drags it down a notch, though. Still a solid watch.
