Official Secrets

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2:12

Official Secrets

R

2019

1h 52m

Mystery & Thriller

Crime

Drama

Biography

War

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

82%

Tomatometer

167 Reviews

89%

Popcornmeter

250+ Verified Ratings

One day in 2003, in the lead up to the Iraq War, British intelligence specialist Katharine Gun receives a memo from the NSA with a shocking directive: the United States is enlisting Britain's help in collecting compromising information on U.N. Security Council members to blackmail them into voting in favor of an invasion of Iraq. Unable to stand by and watch the world be rushed into war, Gun makes the gut-wrenching decision to defy her government and leak the memo to the press.

Critics Consensus

Official Secrets has a familiar structure and an obvious if worthy message, but rises on the strength of Keira Knightley's powerful performance.

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Andrea Gronvall

Chicago Reader

02/21/2020

Knightley shines... in a performance that balances conviction and soul baring, and is all the more genuine for its lack of showiness.

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David Stratton

The Australian

11/22/2019

4/5

Official Secrets celebrates the courage of a government employee who attempted to prevent the invasion at considerable risk to herself and to those she loved.

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Paul Byrnes

Sydney Morning Herald

11/21/2019

4/5

The script, based on a book by Marcia and Thomas Mitchell, keeps layering in complexity, refusing to go dumb. And Knightley's performance gets steelier as she struggles to overcome her fears

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

06/03/2024

3/5

…Official Secrets may be raking over material that is cold potatoes now, but as a look at what the personal consequences might be for a whistle-blower, it’s prescient enough…

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David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

04/21/2024

3/4

Official Secrets fares best in its compelling and often riveting first half...

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Kate Boyle

InSession Film

03/08/2023

A

It’s a phenomenal film, packed with amazing actors, giving equally amazing performances. It tells an important, true story in an easy to watch way.

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BURT J

10/07/2019

Much of the dialogue was done with murmuring that was hard to make out, both because it was murmuring after all and because it was delivered in rather colloquial Brit-speak, too fast to understand. We walked out.

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Jai

10/07/2019

Loved the Movie..... Seems like we are going through the same thing here in the US..... Britain had a Corrupt Prime Minister and the US has a Corrupt President.... Smh

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Kelly Q

10/04/2019

Everyone is the cast was wonderful, the secondary characters were just as fleshed out as the main characters and all the performances were subdued but meaningful. The pace was excellent. I went into the movie thinking okay, Ill probably enjoy it, but I left thinking, Wow, I really enjoyed that! I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys a story driven movie. Im a little surprised that we had to happen on this movie because there has been little to no advertising for it. Go see it!

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Bruce V

10/02/2019

2 1/2, the half is for the nice nap I got in the theater.

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JL

10/01/2019

Very well done and great acting.

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Blaine E

09/30/2019

A "make you think" type of movie. Scary what can happen when the wrong people make the rules!

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Gavin Hood

Director

Keira Knightley

Katharine Gun

Matt Smith

Martin Bright

Matthew Goode

Peter Beaumont

Rhys Ifans

Ed Vulliamy

Adam Bakri

Yasar Gun

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Official Secrets: Trailer 1

2:12

Official Secrets: International Trailer 1

2:08

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Synopsis

One day in 2003, in the lead up to the Iraq War, British intelligence specialist Katharine Gun receives a memo from the NSA with a shocking directive: the United States is enlisting Britain's help in collecting compromising information on U.N. Security Council members to blackmail them into voting in favor of an invasion of Iraq. Unable to stand by and watch the world be rushed into war, Gun makes the gut-wrenching decision to defy her government and leak the memo to the press.

Director: Gavin Hood
Producer: Ged Doherty, Elizabeth Fowler, Melissa Shiyu Zuo, Melissa Zuo
Screenwriter: Sara Bernstein, Gregory Bernstein, Gavin Hood
Distributor: IFC Films
Production Co: Clear Pictures Entertainment, Raindog Films, IFC Films, Entertainment One, The Solution Entertainment Group, The Mark Gordon Company
Rating: R (Language)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama, Biography, War
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 30, 2019, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 30, 2019
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.0M
Runtime: 1h 52m