'The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare' Sets Spring Release
Eiza González as Marjorie Stewart in The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare
Daniel Smith Photography/Lionsgate
The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare officially has an opening weekend. The Guy Richie film, based on the true story of Winston Churchill's secret Special Operations Executive in World War II, will fling open its doors and let viewers in on its secrets this coming spring. The would-be blockbuster, with heartthrob Henry Cavill (Argylle) in the leading role as the real-life Gus March-Phillips, aims to take Churchill's band of misfits who pulled off some of the strangest feats of derring-do against the Nazis and turn it into a summer blockbuster.
This is not the first time Churchill's secret band of creative weirdos, which included Ian Fleming and became the basis upon which he invented the James Bond series later in life, have been committed to screen. Netflix recently released Operation Mincemeat, for example, which was one of the weirder stories out of this department. In this case, Richie is taking his script from the 2014 book Churchill's Secret Warriors: The Explosive True Story of the Special Forces Desperadoes of WWII by Damien Lewis (not to be confused with the actor Damian Lewis).
No official trailer has yet been released for the film, but the first images from filming have been floating around social media for a while. Both are done as old-timey black-and-white Polaroid-style photos, with Cavill and his band of merry men and women (well, one woman anyway) working hard to fool the confused Germans.
Henry Cavill as Gus March-Phillipps, with Alan Ritchson, Henry Golding, Alex Pettyfer, and Hero Fiennes Tiffin as his crew in 'The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare'
Daniel Smith Photography/Lionsgate
Here's the film's official synopsis:
Inspired by true events, The Ministry is based upon recently declassified files of the British War Department. The film tells the story of the first-ever special forces organization formed during WWII by UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill and a small group of military officials, including author Ian Fleming. The top-secret combat unit, composed of a motley crew of rogues and mavericks, goes on a daring mission against the Nazis using entirely unconventional and utterly “ungentlemanly” fighting techniques. Ultimately, their audacious approach changed the course of the war and laid the foundation for the British SAS and modern Black Ops warfare.
Cavill is joined by a bevy of A-listers, including Eiza González (Welcome to Marwen), Alan Ritchson (Reacher), Henry Golding (Persuasion), Alex Pettyfer (The Last Witness), Hero Fiennes Tiffin (The Tunnel), Freddie Fox (Slow Horses), Cary Elwes (Stranger Things), Babs Olusanmokun (Dune), Til Schweiger (Medieval), Henry Zaga (The Stand), Fisher Stevens (Succession), Danny Sapani (Killing Eve), and Carlos Bardem (Assassin's Creed).
Ritchie directed from his script, which was co-written with Paul Tamasy, Eric Johnson, and Arash Amel. Ritchie executive produced the film with Mr. Blow-Things-Up himself, Jerry Bruckheimer, plus Chad Oman, Ivan Atkinson, and John Friedberg.
The Ministry Of Ungentlemanly Warfare is set to open globally in theaters on Friday, April 19, 2024.
