Thirteen Days Essay

Improved Essays
‘Thirteen Days’ is an American historical drama-thriller film. This film is directed by Roger Donaldson. The actors of this film are Kevin Costner, who featured as President John F. Kennedy, Steven Culp as Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy and Dylan Baker as Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. The main character in this movie is President John F. Kennedy. This movie shows what action does the President John F. Kennedy takes from preventing the nuclear warfare happen. The plot for the beginning part happens in October 1962 when United State’s intelligence officers in Washington discover that Soviet Union is in the process of placing nuclear ballistic missiles in Cuba. Missiles launched on these bases can hit from Lima, Peru to …show more content…
They also settle on what they publicly describe as quarantines. Soviets have offered to remove the missiles in return for the United States that it will never invade Cuba and involve in removal of its Jupiter missiles from Turkey. However, United States have done some wrong steps. The defence readiness level of Strategic Air Command (SAC) is raised to DEFCON2, without informing the president; and a routine test launch of a United States offensive missile is also carried out without the President’s knowledge.
Next, the plot for the rising action part of the movie is The Joint Chiefs of staff immediately advice United States military strikes against the missile sites followed by an invasion of Cuba. However, President John F. Kennedy is reluctant to attack and invade because he was worried that this action can cause Soviet to invade Berlin and lead to all-out war.
Besides that, the plot for the falling action part of the movie is President John F. Kennedy and his inner circle struggle to rein those who would take unilateral action. John F. Kennedy communicates with the Soviet leadership and provides them a face saving solution to their reciprocal

Related Documents

  • Superior Essays

    and the USSR came very close to a conventional naval confrontation; however, the use of nuclear weapons were never a real option, the reason is each leader new that nuclear war would devastate each country and the leaders would be held responsible in histories eyes. I believe that Khrushchev realized that he had pushed Kennedy too hard during their first meeting and would probably not get away with a second time. Kennedy knew that he had to make a stand, therefore the naval quarantine would to provide a show of force while still allowing food and supplies thru to appease Castro and giving the Soviet Union an opportunity to back out while saving face. His other only other options were: concession, invasion, and a naval blockade with the authorization to conduct a naval attack on any Russian ship that did not comply. Historians have considered that the US Defense Condition (DEFCON), is a measure of how close nuclear conflict is and during the crisis it was DEFCON 2, the highest it has ever been; however, the DEFCON status also puts our military on notice or recall appropriate as the President had already deployed the Navy.…

    • 1266 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    One major reason for this success was that we thought outside the normal way of thinking and created a team of highly intelligent officials to aid President John F. Kennedy in navigating through this crisis. This group was called ExCom. The Soviet Union decided to install their nuclear missiles on the shores of Cuba, which is roughly 90 miles off U.S shores. President Kennedy’s first move, after much deliberation, was to issue a blockade against the island. ExCom along with the President had to carefully get the Soviets to remove their missiles from Cuba and avoid a possible nuclear war.…

    • 725 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Kennedy and the Cold War The purpose of this essay is to highlight several pivotal and historic events that occurred in President John F. Kennedy’s short term in office (1961-1963). The events to be discussed will be the Bay of Pigs invasion, The Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Berlin Crisis. Anyone of these events had the potential capability to catapult the free world into a war with the Soviet Union.…

    • 809 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    October 1962 marked the beginning of a massive standoff between two powers in the wake of Cold War hostility. The American government was informed that a nuclear capable Soviet Union had established a weapons silo in Cuba. With nuclear weaponry only a mere 90 miles from American shores, a political uproar would soon ensue. President John F. Kennedy announced such news on the twenty-second of October, along with his plan of enacting a naval blockade around the coastal island. This plan demonstrated American readiness to bestow military action to prevent any and all potential threats to national security.…

    • 545 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    According to Smith (2003), “[on] September 4, President Kennedy revealed the presence of ground-to-air antiaircraft missiles in Cuba and warned the Soviet Union not to install offensive weapons in Cuba,” in which the Soviets did not listen too (266). The Kennedy administration went into a state of crisis management that took them in many different directions. Most of the administration was torn between invading Cuba…

    • 1345 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Dbq Arms Race

    • 1199 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Whilst the arms race helped to deter leaders from conflict. Kennedy faced massive military pressure from Generals such as Curtis LeMay, Walter Sweeney and Marshall Carter to attack Cuba during the Cuban Missile crisis. This was a de-stabilising factor because they almost convinced Kennedy to authorise an airstrike on Cuba as a form of retaliation. The Cuban missile crisis took place as a retaliation of Khrushchev due to the ICBM's in Turkey. It was also speculated that Khrushchev could see the missiles from Russia.…

    • 1199 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    ohn F. Kennedy first learned about the construction of the missiles on Cuba at 8:45 AM on October 16, 1962, marking the start of the thirteen-day period titled the Cuban missile crisis (John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum). John F. Kennedy was incensed that Nikita Khrushchev would dare to build missiles a mere 72 miles from the shore of the U.S., as many populous cities were in easy reach of the medium-range missiles. Soon after he composed an executive committee, which he titled Excomm, to debate upon the course of action (History.com Staff). The debates were about his three main options of action. One was to order an airstrike against the missiles in order to destroy them, but it was not guaranteed that they would all be taken…

    • 210 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Kennedy understood that Americans and Russians held the power of nuclear bombs that could potentially destroy the world, but he aimed towards establishing peace and a common ground with the Russians and other communist nations around the world. Kennedy powerfully brought to the world’s attention the call for action, as well as the unity of all nations to help in…

    • 1184 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Cold War Response Children ducked under desks awaiting a nuclear explosion that would never come, adults spent time constructing shelters that would never be used, and militaries fortified for a war that would never shed blood. Constant tension hung in the air for countries all over the world facing the fears of communism and nuclear war. The United States was built upon the principles of freedom, the nation’s fate depends upon the decisions of three Presidents. As the looming threat of Communism spread throughout the world three U.S presidents had plans to stop a troubled world from falling red.…

    • 1040 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The American people became upset even more when President Kennedy made an announcement that the United States of America was on the brink of war because of the proximity of Cuba to America. President Kennedy stated in this announcement to the country that if any missile was launched from Cuba it would be treated as a Soviet attack on the United States (Randall). These tensions needed to be settled. Americans and Kennedy could not keep worrying about how Cuba could severely hurt Americans because of how close Cuba was to America. Kennedy would have succeeded at his job had he been able to do so.…

    • 1883 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, the establishment of the Peace Corps, developments in the Space Race, the building of the Berlin Wall, the Civil Rights Movement, and increased U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War all took place during his presidency. Kennedy's time in office is also marked by high tensions with communist states, and Cuba in particular. An attempt in April 1961 to overthrow the country's dictator, Fidel Castro, was thwarted by armed forces within three days. His administration subsequently rejected plans by the Joint Chiefs of Staff to orchestrate false-flag attacks on American soil in order to gain public approval for a war against Cuba. In October 1962, it was discovered Soviet ballistic missiles had been deployed in Cuba; the resulting period of unease, often termed the Cuban Missile Crisis, is seen by many historians as the closest the human race has ever come to nuclear…

    • 888 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Cuban Missile Crisis

    • 1356 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962 was a dangerous confrontation between the US and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. This is when the US and Soviet Union came the closest to nuclear warfare. The situation was different in a number of ways, featuring confirmations and non supported directions as well as direct communications and miscommunications between both the US and Soviet Union (Office). The overwhelming conflict was also being judged by the fact that it was basically played out at the White House and the Kremlin level with very little say from the respective organizations typically involved in the foreign policy stages (Office).…

    • 1356 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    During the Cold War, there were a series of moments when the world seemed on the brink of nuclear annihilation. The closest of these moments was the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, and it left a lasting feeling of pessimism in the global atmosphere. The United States and the Soviet Union had been actively involved in an arms race and many feared that continued escalation would result in direct conflict between the two superpowers and their respective allies. It was in this atmosphere of uncertainty and fear that the US president John F. Kennedy gave a commencement address at American University in 1963. When the speech was given, it served several key purposes.…

    • 1792 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Jfk Thirteen Days Analysis

    • 1277 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Several of Kennedy’s personality characteristics play important roles in the strategies taken by the United States during the crisis and guided the foreign policy of the country. As a confident and charismatic leader, Kennedy displayed a high need for power and a high perception of control. Kennedy’s confidence in his own ability to choose the correct path for the nation is exemplified in two scenes. When his military staff advanced their…

    • 1277 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    On January 20, 1961, President John F. Kennedy delivered a powerful and moving Inaugural Address to thousands of people across the nation. The Cold War, which divided the globe, was a leading topic from the start of the 1960 election. The United States and the Soviet Union alike threatened each other with nuclear weapons as they raced for power. People all over the world feared of intentional as well as accidental mass destruction from those nuclear weapons. President Kennedy knew people were afraid of what the nuclear age would bring and that division was a global problem, so by using compelling diction as well as anaphora, he hoped to inspire the nation to bring peace and unity during the nuclear age.…

    • 1172 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays