How ‘Pressure’ reveals the D-Day forecast that changed World War II history
A weather forecast would help determine whether one of the largest military operations in history could begin. The movie 'Pressure' starring Brendan Fraser tells that story.
The film “Pressure” examines how the weather forecast played a critical role in the success of the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944.
The forecast that shaped the D-Day invasion has long stood as one of the most consequential weather calls in modern history. In the new film “Pressure,” that high-stakes moment is brought to the screen through the story of the Allied leaders and meteorologists tasked with deciding whether conditions would allow the World War II invasion of Normandy, France, to move forward.
The invasion was a critical step in the Allied effort to liberate Nazi-occupied Western Europe. D-Day was originally planned for Monday, June 5, 1944, but was delayed one day after meteorologists warned of dangerous conditions over the English Channel, including an inbound storm that threatened to bring large waves, low clouds and poor visibility. Actor Brendan Fraser, who portrays Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower in the film, said the decision came after Eisenhower listened closely to the experts around him.
Actor Brendan Fraser in a scene from "Pressure," playing General Dwight D. Eisenhower. (Image credit: Focus Features)
“He didn't just hear them," Fraser told AccuWeather. "He solicited the opinions of experts around him to give him the best information so he could make the most informed decisions."
Ultimately, weather information would help determine whether one of the largest military operations in history could begin.
“He did have to tell [Allied leadership] that an inbound storm would cause 6-, 8-, 10-foot waves, it would create cloud cover that Air Force and Navy couldn't hit targets through, that landing vessels, which were already tenuous in a way to begin with, would have even more difficulty making it to the beaches of Normandy,” Fraser said.
Director Anthony Maras on set filming "Pressure." (Image credit: Focus Features)
The film also establishes the stakes of the mission early on by highlighting Exercise Tiger, a dress rehearsal for what would become the D-Day invasion. The training exercise ended in catastrophe, with more than 740 men killed in a series of mistakes over separate incidents.
On the decision to include that moment, the film's director, Anthony Maras, said: “Starting with that and coming back to that, you know, some select times in the film is meant to show the gravity of what these decisions mean and to try and begin to get across the absolute weight of the world that is on the shoulders, not just of Eisenhower and Stag, but all of that Allied leadership."
Stag refers to Group Capt. James Stagg, the British meteorologist who advised Allied leadership ahead of D-Day.
Actors Andrew Scott and Kerry Condon in a scene from the film "Pressure." Scott plays the chief meteorologist of the Allied forces in Europe, James Stagg, and Condon plays Cpt. Kay Summersby, Eisenhower's assistant. (Image credit: Focus Features)
That tragedy underscored how much was riding on the interpretation of weather data before the invasion, according to Maras.
“If the interpretation of this data is wrong," Maras said, "if they make mistakes, it's not going to be hundreds of men dying like they did in the training exercise."
Several meteorologists consulted on the film, including Martin Young, who worked for more than 40 years at some of the same weather stations used by Stagg. Maras attributed Young with sharing details about what the weather room was like and how the different forecasters reacted at the time.
“He was also able to give the little details what the environment was like in the weather room, you know, the competitive nature of the different forecasters, the smoke and the ashtrays, you know, overflowing with butts at the time,” Maras said.
The debate ahead of D-Day was more than a disagreement over weather maps. The timing of the invasion depended on a narrow set of conditions involving wind, waves, tides, moonlight and cloud cover. A wrong forecast could have threatened the lives of thousands of troops and changed the outcome of the war.
As for how close to reality the portrayal of meteorologists and forecasters in the film comes, AccuWeather founder Joel Myers gave his approval.
“It did dramatize the event as it should have been," Myers said. "It could be argued it was the most important and meaningful forecast as it affected history because the success of the invasion."
Myers is also the author of “Invisible Iceberg,” a book about how weather and climate have shaped history, including the forecast leading up to D-Day. He screened the movie with AccuWeather meteorologists and reflected on the competing opinions that played a role in different forecasts and, ultimately, history.
Myers pointed out that the film’s depiction of intense debates among forecasters reflects the kind of discussions that still happen among meteorologists today when different models, data and interpretations point to different outcomes.
More importantly, “Pressure” captures the human side of forecasting: the uncertainty, the expertise, the disagreement and the responsibility that comes with making a weather call when lives are on the line.
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