Anthropoid Trailer (2016)

Trailer for Anthropoid, starring Cillian Murphy, Jamie Dornan and Charlotte Le Bon.

Anthropoid is based on the extraordinary true story of Operation Anthropoid, the World War II mission to assassinate SS General Reinhard Heydrich. The Reich's third in command after Hitler and Himmler, Heydrich was the main architect behind the Final Solution and the leader of occupying Nazi forces in Czechoslovakia whose reign of terror prompted Allied soldiers (Cillian Murphy and Jamie Dornan) to hatch a top-secret mission that would change the face of Europe forever.

Emily Watson was originally cast for the part of Mrs. Moravcová, but had to abandon the production when her father became ill, opening up the role for Alena Mihulova.

Director Sean Ellis has been working up to this feature ever since the early 2000s, after he watched a documentary that focused on operation Anthropoid.

As I watch the first trailer for Anthropoid, I can't help but think of Valkyrie throughout the preview's entire running time. There are just too many similarities. Does that hurt the film? Not at all. Valkyrie, though not perfect, was successful at keeping audiences on the edge of their seats while telling the story of Operation Valkyrie. And now we have the tale of Operation Anthropoid, an assassination attempt targeting one level below Hitler, that seems to encounter all the hiccups that Valkyrie did.

Based on the smaller distribution, I wasn't sure if Anthropoid would match up to Valkyrie in quality or production. But it's a pretty solid start so far.