Loading Events & Classes
JxJ

A Compassionate Spy with Post-Screening Q&A

Adults (18+), Young Professionals (21-45), Older Adults (65+)

Date : Thursday, Aug 24

Time : 7:30 pm - 9:30 pm
Location : Cafritz Hall

“A First-Rate Portrait” – The Guardian

Film still from documentary feature "A Compassionate Spy"

Advance Screening – Limited Run

Dir. Steve James | 101 min
Documentary United States  2023
English

The youngest physicist on the Manhattan Project, Ted Hall didn’t share his colleagues’ elation after the successful detonation of the world’s first atomic bomb. Increasingly concerned that such a powerful weapon could lead to nuclear catastrophe, he decided to start passing key information about the bomb’s construction to the Soviet Union. At the University of Chicago he met and married Joan. Living under a cloud of suspicion and years of FBI surveillance and intimidation, the pair raised a family while Ted refocused his scientific brilliance on groundbreaking biophysics research.

A Compassionate Spy, two-time Oscar® nominee Steve James’ nuanced documentary, reveals the twists and turns of this real-life spy story, its profound impact on nuclear history, and the couple’s remarkable love and life together during more than 50 years of marriage.

Post-screening Q&A on August 24 with Dave Lindorff and Ben Paulker, National Security Editor, Washington Post.

couple roasting marshmallows over small burners.

Join Our Email List

Stay updated on what’s happening at the EDCJCC with the insider track on events, family programs, fitness and more.