Dunkirk (2017)

Review

106min

Genre:     Fact-based, Action, Drama, War

Director:  Christopher Nolan

Cast:       Fionn Whitehead, Tom Hardy, Mark Rylance…and more

Writer:    Christopher Nolan

-Synopsis-

In the summer of 1940 and with Britain on the brink of military catastrophe, nearly 400,000 British and allied soldiers stand cut-off and surrounded by the German army on the northern French coast, only for the people of Britain to risk everything and race across the channel to bring their boys back home—as director Christopher Nolan stamps a pivotal point of the second world war onto the big screen . . . and in nerve-shredding style.

Having established a deserved reputation for being one of the premiere directors of layered and engrossing big screen spectacle across genres over the last fifteen years, writer/director Nolan turns to a pivotal point in 20th century history with his tale of suffering and survival, when military catastrophe was turned into a rallying cry of defiance for the British people—proving beyond doubt to be a visionary and singularly bold filmmaker, with an eye for spectacle, an ear for drama, and the supremely steady hand to execute his vision with real punch and panache.

‘Dunkirk’ unfolds as a trademark and subtly nonlinear Nolan storyline—intersecting at slightly different chronological points and occasionally circling back—framing the narrative through the ordeal on land, air and sea, centred around young British soldier ‘Tommy’ (Fionn Whitehead) and his unfortunate experiences through the different facets of the Dunkirk calamity.

While navy commander ‘Bolton’ (Kenneth Branagh) tries to organise the paltry excuse for an evacuation from the beachhead, Tommy and a couple of fellow soldiers (Aneurin Barnard & Harry Styles) try to escape the blood-soaked beaches of northern France, along with nearly 400,000 other young men, as Royal Air Force pilots ‘Farrier’ (Tom Hardy) and ‘Collins’ (Jack Lowden) struggle to keep the Luftwaffe from cutting them down—meanwhile day sailor Dawson (Mark Rylance) and his two young first mates (Barry Keoghan & Tom Glynn-Carney) lead the civilian effort to rescue the stranded allied forces.

Let’s not mince words here, ‘Dunkirk’ is a masterpiece of a big screen spectacle and an instant classic of a war film, quite frankly one of the most unrelentingly tense conflict dramas ever made, plunging the audience into the thick of it from the very start and never relenting. Nolan uses every modern movie technique available to make the audience feel every bullet and explosion, while employing a classic movie drama style and minimalist dialogue to connect you to a handful of very human heroes, and leaving you feeling for everyone around them.

Nolan reunites with his ‘Interstellar’ cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema (Let the Right One In, Spectre) who vividly captures all the pulsating action and some truly iconic shots, against the backdrop of the all-important elements, switching from low light and hazy conditions to clear skies and the pilot-blinding sun—and taking full advantage of IMAX and the grandeur of 70mm stock. The sound design is just as impressive as the visuals, again using the IMAX format to great effect with the startling sounds of war almost coursing through your veins. ‘Dunkirk’ also marks the sixth time Nolan has relied on maestro Hans Zimmer and to drive the emotional narrative of his film, here with a pulsating score as relentless as the action, but occasionally breaking into rousing pastoral motifs.

The entire ensemble cast deliver through minimal and realist dialogue while being put through the ringer by their director, with experienced performers Rylance and Branagh representing British stoicism in the face of madness, while regular Nolan collaborator Cillian Murphy powers through an emotionally shattered role and his fellow ‘Dark Knight’ series alumnus Tom Hardy once again does stellar work whilst covered by a breathing mask. If there is a star of this show then it’s newcomer Fionn Whitehead, intense and completely captivating as the narrative lynchpin who connects all the stories, representing the grit and survival instincts of the canny British soldier—even a certain boyband superstar impresses in his own film debut.

This is no doubt a dramatisation of the events of that fateful week in 1940, weaving fictional characters and cinematic drama into a narrative based on real events, but despite the moaning by some about historical inaccuracy—a spurious claim by those who conveniently conflate narrative omission and focusing on a particular element of a story with trying to re-write history—‘Dunkirk’ is pretty factually sound. After all, no one accuses ‘Saving Private Ryan’ of re-writing the history of the Normandy landings by not depicting its biggest participants the British and Canadians, that’s just not the story Spielberg was telling—for all of Hollywood’s guilt when it comes to taking artistic license, would you really prefer your historical epics were crafted by historians?

Nevertheless this is clearly a film from a distinctly British perspective, with the French playing an ancillary role and the German presence only felt but never seen, beyond the menace of the Luftwaffe that is. No Nazi face is ever shown, with the enemy amounting to a faceless threat which picks-off the allies from air and under-sea, giving the film a different feel than most World War II dramas.

Ultimately Nolan is paying tribute to the young men who suffered, endured and survived to fight another day, and the many who didn’t—plus a grateful nation who came to their rescue and changed the course of the war . . . and arguably the western world. Yet despite the reverence for the iconic Spitfire and the respect for the men in uniform, this isn’t quite a nationalistic flag-waving exercise—just a gripping cinematic tribute to a sombre piece of history, with the nerve to sprinkle in a little patriotism at the risk of irking the perpetually offended.

In his quest to emulate his cinematic icon Stanley Kubrick (arguably the greatest of all), Nolan now just needs a cutting absurdist satire, an ancient historical epic, an iconic psychological horror and stylish dystopian drama to truly belong in the company of absolute greatness—in the meantime though we’re sure he’s happy with continuing to make visually spectacular and thematically riveting films, while leaving an indelible mark on the face of modern cinema.

The Bottom Line…

A modern masterpiece inspired by a classic war narrative which pays tribute to the young men who endured it, Christopher Nolan’s latest cinematic creation is about as unrelentingly tense and gripping as filmmaking gets. A riveting visual and audial experience which is just as thematically accomplished and emotionally captivating, ‘Dunkirk’ goes directly into the pantheon of all-time great war films—while nudging its director up the list of boldest and brightest filmmakers.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Dunkirk (1958)

When the British expeditionary forces are forced to retreat to the beaches of Northern France by advancing German forces in 1940, the people of Britain and their ‘little ships’ are the best hope of saving the allied forces and preventing all-out victory in Europe for the Nazis, in this classic dramatisation of extraordinary events which shaped the course of the second World War.

Directed by Leslie Norman and starring John Mills, Richard Attenborough and Bernard Lee among others.

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