Top 10 Historically Accurate Spy Movies

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Real spies aren't quite like James Bond! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most detail-oriented and/or historically-sound espionage films.

Transcript

00:00 "You feeling a little paranoid on our last day?"

00:02 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most detail-oriented

00:09 and/or historically sound espionage films.

00:12 "Everyone thinks Enigma is unbreakable. Good. Let me try and we'll know for sure, won't we?"

00:18 Number 10. Operation Mincemeat

00:22 "A battleground in shades of grey, played out in deception, seduction, and bad faith."

00:31 Despite the odd title, this film shares the name of the real-life World War II plot,

00:36 Operation Mincemeat. The movie mostly sticks to the facts while recounting the dramatic act of

00:41 wartime espionage. British officials place false documents on the corpse of Glyndwyr Michael,

00:46 hoping to mislead the Germans into believing that the pending invasion of Sicily was happening

00:50 elsewhere. "You don't know he's already dead?" "In a way, yes, but in another he's very much

00:57 alive, our clever, dashing man." The risky plan works in the movie, and surprisingly enough,

01:03 it also did in real life. With an all-star cast, Operation Mincemeat finds a way to track the

01:09 larger-than-life plot from its inception to its tricky execution. It even includes the

01:14 contributions of James Bond author Ian Fleming. While it might seem outlandish, this little-known

01:19 plan receives the proper treatment it deserves. "Mincemeat's swallowed.

01:24 Rod Linen's sick." Number 9. The Courier. "If you want to do business in Moscow, I need to know."

01:33 "Yes?" "Can you hold your alcohol?" What happens when a British salesman starts spying for MI6?

01:42 The Courier explores the journey of Greville Wynn, who is recruited as an intermediary to

01:46 real-life Russian spy Oleg Penkovsky. The two men collaborated in delivering top-secret messages

01:52 from Moscow to British intelligence. While the movie takes some creative liberties, such as the

01:57 inclusion of an American agent played by Rachel Brosnahan, it remains largely faithful to Wynn's

02:02 activities. "What if I get caught?" "You won't. You don't know that. That'd execute me, correct?"

02:10 The Courier depicts the operation's effect on his personal life and health, which declines as he is

02:15 caught by the KGB and sent to prison. It also includes the information he provided about the

02:20 Cuban Missile Crisis. Powered by Benedict Cumberbatch's electrifying performance,

02:24 this piece comes alive on the basis of actual history. "I thought I could make the world a safer place.

02:31 But I failed." Number 8. Operation Finale. "You have no interest in what I have to say,

02:42 unless it confirms what you think you already know." At the end of World War II, several Nazis

02:48 managed to evade justice by fleeing Europe. One of them was the high-ranking SS officer Adolf Eichmann.

02:54 Operation Finale delves into the commando operation to find Eichmann in Argentina and take him back to

03:00 Israel. The mission actually involves seeking out the war criminal, capturing him, and ensuring he

03:04 faced trial for his crimes. "For the first time in our history, we will judge our executioner.

03:10 We will also warn off any who may wish to follow his example." Oscar Isaac plays the real-life

03:18 Mossad agent Peter Malkin, one of the men who helped bring Eichmann to justice. Like a true

03:23 espionage film, Operation Finale injects Eichmann's capture with the right dose of excitement and

03:29 tension. Still, to its credit, it authentically portrays the efforts of Israeli intelligence

03:34 in getting their target to Jerusalem. "You got him. Remember that. It wasn't just me,

03:40 Rev. Doesn't matter anyway. No one's gonna know it was us." Number seven, A Most Wanted Man.

03:47 "It's just an ordinary pen. Looks like a pen, writes like a pen, and listens like a pen."

03:53 In this John le Carre adaptation, Gunther Bachmann is a German intelligence man specializing in

03:59 finding information about Islamic terrorists. His work throughout the film, involving a Chechen man

04:05 who becomes a person of interest, sets off a complicated narrative about alliances and shady

04:10 deals. "We become their friends, their brothers, their fathers, their lovers, if we have to."

04:19 The sharp plot resembles much of the author's best work, holding true to more believable spy

04:23 craft and inspired by real acts of rendition. The film was praised for its ability to delve into the

04:28 gray morality of modern espionage, even including a climactic twist to hammer home the bitter reality

04:34 of intelligence work. Bachmann tries to do the right thing, but in the end he's betrayed by the

04:39 people he once considered allies. "After 24 hours of Russian questioning, any one of us would admit

04:44 to anything." Number six, The Good Shepherd. "I mean, I hope you're lucky enough to meet someone

04:51 you trust. I've got to say, I haven't." From a Yale student to a spy, Matt Damon's Edward Wilson

05:00 witnesses the creation of the Central Intelligence Agency. The Good Shepherd showcases the uncertainty

05:06 of the Cold War, taking viewers from Germany to the Congo on a complex journey about the evolution

05:11 of American intelligence services. "This building doesn't get built without you, your CIA's heart

05:17 and soul. Who knows, you might have a secret about me in that safe of yours." Some critics

05:24 have faulted the film's fictional characters and historical details, but there's still a worthy

05:28 spy story underneath the accurately created setting. The production design masterfully

05:33 immerses us in tense scenes rooted in real people and events from the period. While some of its

05:38 assertions about events like the Bay of Pigs invasion are debatable, The Good Shepherd creates

05:42 a jumping-off point for important conversations about the CIA. "I have to tell you, I have some

05:48 real problems with this whole thing, despite how much we need it. I'm concerned that too much power

05:54 will end up in the hands of too few." Number five, Spy Game. "Happy? 74 casualties, an entire apartment

06:02 block leveled, one dead terrorist. Yeah, happy." CIA asset Tom Bishop is in a Chinese prison awaiting

06:10 execution, but his old mentor Nathan Muir might be able to save him. This sets up the story at the

06:14 heart of Spy Game, which follows a decades-long relationship between the pair and details Bishop's

06:20 training during the 1970s. "You know Langley has seven different birthdates for you? They're all wrong.

06:26 I know, believe me, it wasn't easy. KGB, Mossad, also wrong. Fortunately, I was well trained." The film also

06:33 weaves in flashbacks that reflect on the CIA's activities in countries such as Vietnam and Lebanon.

06:38 Director Tony Scott does a great job immersing the audience in the setting, with period details that

06:43 feel lived in. One former intelligence officer lauded the film for its performances and its

06:48 portrayal of trust in the espionage world. Despite being Hollywood entertainment, this one retains

06:53 enough accuracy to be considered a proper spy adventure. "Don't ever risk your life or your career for us.

07:02 Comes down to you or them, send flowers." Number four, Bridge of Spies. "But I'm talking to you about

07:10 something else. The security of your country." Steven Spielberg's period piece features a recreation

07:18 of a lesser-known piece of Cold War history. Caught for spying in America, Rudolph Abel is assigned

07:24 James B. Donovan as his lawyer for the trial. The lengthy and controversial legal process serves as

07:29 the bulk of the movie, delving into the evidence against Abel, including his methods of receiving

07:34 messages. "You've never asked me if the charges were true, if I am indeed a spy." For the most part,

07:45 the film gets this right. It also depicts the Soviet spy's eventual swap for American pilot

07:49 Gary Powers in the 1960s, which stays largely faithful to the real-life event. Bridge of Spies

07:55 exaggerates certain elements of the timeline, but succeeds in capturing the general mood and

08:00 political importance of post-war espionage. "I have a mandate to serve you, nobody else does.

08:04 Quite frankly, everybody else has an interest in sending you to the electric chair." Number three,

08:09 The Imitation Game. "But you know, Alan, sometimes it's the very people who no one imagines anything

08:14 of, who do the things no one can imagine." Set during World War II, The Imitation Game spotlights

08:21 the importance of the British codebreakers at Bletchley Park. The film focuses in particular

08:26 on the contributions of mathematician Alan Turing. This includes his work in helping to break the

08:31 Germans' Enigma machine, which sent secret messages during the war. "But you also haven't got anywhere

08:36 with it. If you had, you wouldn't be hiring cryptographers out of university. You need me

08:40 a lot more than I need you. I like solving problems, Commander, and Enigma is the most

08:48 difficult problem in the world." The film captures the era especially well and does justice in

08:53 praising the central hero's wartime efforts. Given that this is not a documentary, the movie makes

08:57 some creative jumps in terms of the overall codebreaking process and sidelines some of the

09:02 other important players. It does, however, make an important statement about the protagonist's

09:06 eventual demise and demonization by UK courts. Number 2. The Lives of Others

09:22 In 1980s East Germany, Gerd Wiesler is tasked with conducting a surveillance campaign on a

09:34 playwright named George Draman. What follows is a frank examination of the paranoia of the Cold War.

09:40 People have championed this film for its characters, the tense plot, and the general

09:44 exploration of the Stasi government in the East. Tapping into the day-to-day worry of the nation

09:58 during the decade, The Lives of Others finds a way to take fictional circumstances and find the

10:03 emotional truth behind them. There's even a real analog to Wiesler that inspired the main

10:07 character's journey. This project captured the GDR surveillance of citizens and the resulting fear

10:12 that perpetrated that society, and it took home the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

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10:44 Number 1. Tinker Taylor's Soldier Spy

10:56 One of John le Carré's most famous works, Tinker Taylor's Soldier Spy is also considered a renowned

11:01 piece of spy fiction. This acclaimed adaptation does justice to the material and the real-life

11:07 world of espionage, partly inspired by the original author's interpretation of scandals

11:11 such as the Cambridge Five. Rather than turning the story into a series of shootouts and chases,

11:16 the 2011 version puts most of the characters in rooms having tense conversations.

11:21 "Don't you think it's time to recognize there is as little worth on your side as there is on mine?"

11:27 This lack of outrageous events has even drawn the admiration of real people from the spy community.

11:33 Taking a no-frills look at counterintelligence and finding moles, this movie delves into

11:37 emotionally resonant sequences, providing a raw account of the world of espionage.

11:42 "They're gonna kill me."

11:44 "Who is?"

11:48 "You lot. Or their lot, whoever gets me first."

11:51 Did we forget another believable spy movie? Let us know in the comments below.

11:56 "Most of the time all you need is a stick of gum, pocket knife, and smile."

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12:08 [Music]

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