Thirteen Days (film)

Infobox_Film
name = Thirteen Days


imdb_id = 0146309
writer = David Self
starring = Kevin Costner
Bruce Greenwood
director = Roger Donaldson
editing = Conrad Buff
producer =
distributor = New Line Cinema
released = flagicon|USA 25 December, 2000 (Los Angeles and New York City only)
flagicon|USA 12 January, 2001
flagicon|UK 16 March, 2001
flagicon|Australia 3 May, 2001
flagicon|New Zealand 12 July, 2001
runtime = 145 min
language = English
budget = $80,000,000 (est.)
gross = $33,094,473
music = Trevor Jones

"Thirteen Days" is a 2000 historical film directed by Roger Donaldson about the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, seen from the perspective of the US political leadership.

Most of the scenes take place in the White House, focusing on the decision-making process as President John F. Kennedy and his brother Robert confront the military, who are pushing for an invasion of Cuba as a reaction to the installation of missiles there by the Soviet Union. Most of the film deals not so much with the Cold War between the Superpowers so much as the conflict between the civilian and military authorities over the correct strategy to pursue. The film is structured so that much of it is seen through the eyes of special White House counsel Kenny O'Donnell, played by Kevin Costner.

While the movie carries the same name as the book "Thirteen Days" by Robert F. Kennedy, it is actually based on "The Kennedy Tapes - Inside the White House During the Cuban Missile Crisis" by Ernest May and Philip Zelikow.

Distribution

New Line Cinema was one of the production companies, alongside Kevin Costner's company Tig Productions and Armyan Bernstein's Beacon Communications. The film was given a limited release in late December 2000, but wide release did not occur until January 2001, with a staggered release to various countries throughout most of the year.

Cast

*Kevin Costner as Kenneth "Kenny" O'Donnell
*Bruce Greenwood as President John F. Kennedy
*Stephanie Romanov as First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy
*Steven Culp as Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy
*Dylan Baker as Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara
*Bill Smitrovich as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Maxwell Taylor
*Frank Wood as National Security Advisor McGeorge Bundy
*Ed Lauter as Deputy Director of the CIA Lt. Gen. Marshall Carter
*Kevin Conway as Chief of Staff of the USAF Gen. Curtis LeMay
*Tim Kelleher as Ted Sorensen
*Len Cariou as Dean Acheson
*Brick Mason as Bryce Mason

ee also

*"The Missiles of October", another film regarding the crisis
*"Thirteen Days", memoirs of the crisis by Robert Kennedy

External links

*imdb title|id=0146309|title=Thirteen Days
*rotten-tomatoes|id=thirteen_days|title=Thirteen Days
*mojo title|id=thirteendays|title=Thirteen Days
* [http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=thirteen_days_in_145_minutes "Thirteen Days in 145 minutes"] – commentary by Ernest R. May, Harvard professor who wrote the book on which it was based, on the accuracy of the movie
* [http://www.whitehousemuseum.org/special/movies.htm#thirteendays "White House Museum"] - How accurate was the movie recreation of the architecture and floor plan of the actual White House (review)