The latest Guy Ritchie flick “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” has a spine of true story to it, even if it does all it can to amplify a long-declassified World War II tale with enough dead Nazis to make “Inglourious Basterds” blush.
The result is a jauntily entertaining film but also an awkward fusion. Ritchie’s film, which opens in theaters Friday, takes the increasingly prolific director’s fondness for swaggering, exploitation-style ultraviolence and applies it to a real-life stealth mission that would have been thrilling enough if it had been told with a little historical accuracy.
In 2016, documents were declassified that detailed Operation Postmaster, during which a small group of British special operatives sailed to the West African island of Fernando Po, then a Spanish colony, in the Gulf of Guinea. Spain was then neutral in the war, which made the Churchill-approved gambit audacious. In January 1942, they snuck into the port and sailed off with several ships — including the Italian merchant vessel Duchessa d’Aosta — that were potentially being used in Atlantic warfare.
Jury selection for Trump's hush money trial could near a close
Landmark loss and damage fund approved as UN climate conference closes in Egypt
U.S. Summit for Democracy fans flame of confrontation to tumultuate world
CPPCC National Committee Holds Gathering to Ring in New Year, Xi Jinping Delivers Important Speech
NOT REAL NEWS: A look at what didn't happen this week
Chinese FM meets Russian ambassador to China
Senior Chinese diplomat meets delegation of Brazilian Workers' Party
Iowa lawmakers approve bill just in time to increase compensation for Boy Scout abuse victims
CPPCC National Committee Holds Gathering to Ring in New Year, Xi Jinping Delivers Important Speech
Canucks' Rick Tocchet among new coaches making an impact in leading teams to NHL playoffs
Indian investigating agency to question Delhi chief minister in liquor policy case