Official Secrets

82%

Tomatometer

168 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.

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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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Critics Reviews

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Andrea Gronvall

Chicago Reader

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

Feb 21, 2020

Full Review

David Stratton

The Australian

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.

Rated: 4/5

Nov 22, 2019

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Paul Byrnes

Sydney Morning Herald

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

Rated: 4/5

Nov 21, 2019

Full Review

Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

…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…

Rated: 3/5

Jun 3, 2024

Full Review

David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

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

Rated: 3/4

Apr 21, 2024

Full Review

Kate Boyle

InSession Film

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.

Rated: A

Mar 8, 2023

Full Review

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Audience Reviews

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BURT J 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. Rated 1/5 Stars • Rated 1 out of 5 stars 10/07/19 Full Review Jai 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 Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/07/19 Full Review Kelly Q 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! Rated 4/5 Stars • Rated 4 out of 5 stars 10/04/19 Full Review Bruce V 2 1/2, the half is for the nice nap I got in the theater. Rated 2.5/5 Stars • Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 10/02/19 Full Review JL Very well done and great acting. Rated 5/5 Stars • Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/01/19 Full Review Blaine E A "make you think" type of movie. Scary what can happen when the wrong people make the rules! Rated 4/5 Stars • Rated 4 out of 5 stars 09/30/19 Full Review Read all reviews

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Cast & Crew

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

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Official Secrets

Official Secrets (2019)

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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: The Solution Entertainment Group, Raindog Films, Clear Pictures Entertainment, Entertainment One, IFC Films, The Mark Gordon Company
Rating: R (Language)
Genre: Drama, Mystery & Thriller
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