New World War 2 D-Day epic hailed as ‘quality Dad content’ | Films | Entertainment

Steven Spielberg’s D-Day opening of Saving Private Ryan stunned the world and now another Oscars hopeful depicting Operation Overlord is opening in the US this weekend ahead of a UK release on September 9. Pressure is a new movie about the 72 hour build-up to D-Day, based on the West End play of the same name. In the upcoming World War 2 epic, Oscar-winner Brendan Fraser stars as Supreme Allied Commander and future US President Dwight D Eisenhower. Joining him in the cast are Andrew Scott as Britain’s chief meteorological officer James Stagg and Kerry Condon as Eisenhower’s trusted aide Captain Kay Summersby. Meanwhile, Chris Messina will play US Meteorologist Irving P Krick and Band of Brothers star Damian Lewis portrays Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery aka Monty. The first reviews from across the pond are in, praising Scott’s performance in particular and the historical detail with an 85% Rotten Tomatoes score at time of writing. Check out the review highlights below.

The Hollywood Reporter
Featuring an award-worthy performance by Andrew Scott in the lead role and solid supporting turns by Brendan Fraser, Kerry Condon and Chris Messina, Pressure lives up to its title with its expert ratcheting up of sustained tension.

Deadline
A crackerjack film detailing a historical event in the lead-up to it, even more than its actual execution, but also a stirring and pertinent lesson that is as relevant today as much as ever.

Variety
The film belongs to the ever-reliable Scott, who commendably doesn’t take the easily sympathetic route with the anxious, uptight Stagg, playing him with a suitably dour chill to match his grim forecast.

IGN
Pressure is quality dad content. War movie fans and WWII buffs should appreciate the film’s devotion to detail, while mainstream audiences will be treated to a taut, compelling story about the very real men behind the icons who ensured an Allied victory.

MovieWeb
A thoroughly absorbing, high-stakes drama in which the success of the largest amphibious assault in the history of warfare comes down to two men arguing about the weather.

Screen Rant
Andrew Scott and Brendan Fraser do terrific work in the lead roles, and they’re magnetic enough to make a movie about debates over weather predictions riveting – even if the script and direction can’t quite match their tone.

Pressure hits US theatres on May 29 and UK cinemas on September 9, 2026.