As powerful and timely now as it was then and I agree it's something ALL world leaders should be required to view at least once a year! It's also much more genuine than Thirteen Days in which producer Kevin Costner inflated his role to make it appear that his character, Kenny McConnell, was closer to JFK than his own brother,the AG,Robert(the ONLY TIME nepotism worked)! Also I feel William Devane and Martin Sheen did EXCEPTIONAL jobs not only in mastering the distinctive Kennedy accent but their personalities and spirit-not to mention a slight physical resemblance(Devane including a reference to President Kennedy's physical difficulties-the use of the rocker&painfully reclining on the sofa)I saw it when it first aired and seeing it now(any advances in technology had no effect) all the performances, but especially theirs,took me right back to those heart-stopping moments! I have seen both William Devane and Martin Sheen in many other performances but I always remember this as some of their finest work! It's also a stunning reminder of how essential it is to have someone with a calm, intelligent, experienced, diplomatic mind in charge with the sole focus being not just on the protection of ALL Americans but ALL peoples of the world! This also supports the documents that were discovered decades later(Peter Jennings of ABC News did a documentary on them)regarding the last minute communication DIRECTLY between Kennedy and Khrushchev,who bypassed the "interference" of the others who favored war, and acknowledged that they BOTH wanted the same thing- PEACE for their people! Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of either current regimes of Russia or the United States! Oh it made me miss President Obama even more!
... View MoreThis really impressed me when first I viewed it in '74. The real standout was William Devane as JFK. One of the most realistic pieces of casting and portrayls I've seen! Only on the close ups could you tell that it was Devane. His accent and demeanour were perfection. In other words he was JFK! Everyone else was superb as was the story, camera work, direction etc. The casting was brilliant and more than that REAL! This was truly a winner from start to finish.
... View MoreA must-see depiction of the Cuban missile crisis of 1962. Focusing mostly on the Kennedy administration, this made-for-TV movie captures all the tension and emotion occurring inside the White House. It gives a real insider's view of how the American government operates. It also takes you inside the Kremlin giving you a glimpse how both sides dealt with the crisis. William Devane and Martin Sheen give excellent performances as Jack and Bobby Kennedy. The entire cast is top-notch. Don't bother with Thirteen Days, it pales by comparison. This is the real deal.
... View MoreSome have berated the "The Missiles of October" for being over-long. Nonsense! (One genius who complained did, however, like the performance of "Marin Short". Sounds like a 12 year-old. Hey, maybe he is!) It would have been over-long if it were a boring story with boring performances. But "The Missiles of October" is neither. The story is, of course, riveting, whether you were around during the early sixties or not. And the performances - the guy who cast the three main characters, JFK (William Devane), RFK (Martin Sheen) and Khrushchev (Howard Da Silva), should have got an Emmy. Martin Sheen may have over-done Bobby Kennedy a bit, but it should be noted, that RFK's "Kennedy accent" was much thicker than JFK's, almost to the point of self-caricature.Nor is the film "dated," as another reviewer would have it. The TV claustrophobic atmosphere is in perfect keeping with the tight, closed, suffocating tension which actually existed in the real situation. The crisis did not occur out of doors, or in halls - it occurred in a few rooms. "The Missiles of October" possesses the hallmark of classic drama: though you may know how it ends, you want to watch it again and again.
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