Dunkirk (2017)

[Grissom]

[thecolorsblend]

Not really sure what the point of view on this movie will be. Hitler insisted on allowing British forces to evacuate Dunkirk... which proved to be a pretty significant blunder on his part because if he'd killed or captured them, it would've helped force the British Empire's surrender to Germany. But he said he let them go because he never wanted war with Britain in the first place and thought he'd taught them enough of a lesson.

But if Britain surrendered after Dunkirk, it's quite likely Germany could've recalled their soldiers and used them to augment Operation Barbarossa and possibly defeated the Soviet Union. And if that had happened, odds are America wouldn't have had the paired reproductive organs to enter the war anymore.

Needless to say, the 20th century would've played out very differently if Hitler hadn't let the British forces go at Dunkirk.

[Silver Nemesis]

I just got back from seeing this at an IMAX theatre. It's a truly excellent piece of filmmaking. Probably Nolan's best film to date and certainly his most grownup picture since Insomnia. It's also by far his most British film and I expect UK audiences will be the ones with whom it resonates the strongest.

The 65mm photography is gorgeous, with the aerial footage in particular commanding the most breathtaking vistas. This marks Nolan's second collaboration with Dutch DP Hoyte Van Hoytema, and the cinematography here surpasses anything in the director's previous work. The script is structured in a nonlinear narrative and features surprisingly little dialogue. If you were irked by the profusion of expository speech in some of Nolan's earlier films, then fear not. The story of Dunkirk is related almost entirely in cinematic terms. It makes particularly effective use of montage and nonlinear editing.

There's also a pleasing precision to the camerawork that contrasts with some of Nolan's earlier films (where he made a point of using shaky cam and avoiding storyboards). Here Nolan is very careful with camera placement and the framing of shots. It's most noticeable in the scenes with the sinking ships and crashing planes. When you're avoiding CG effects and using real planes and real ships (the practical stunt work and lack of digital effects is another of the film's major strengths), I suppose you have to be precise. There are certain stunts in this film that could only be filmed once.

The use of time is perhaps the most interesting structural component in Dunkirk. We've already seen Nolan incorporate relativity into some of his earlier films: in Inception time passes differently depending on which sub-layer of the dream state the characters are exploring, while in Interstellar time is distorted by the forces of gravity. In Dunkirk the plot is divided amongst three main strands: land, sea and air. For the characters on the beach, the story elapses over the span of one week. For the characters sailing from Dorset, the story takes place in one day. For the pilots flying the Spitfires, the story happens in just one hour. And yet all these narratives eventually intertwine during a shared denouement, thus highlighting the connectedness between the outwardly separate plot strands and the human lives they affect. It works remarkably well.

The unconventional structure also allows Nolan to contrast scenes from different stages of an individual's character arc in order to emphasise how drastically their experiences have altered them. This is used to particularly strong effect with Cillian Murphy's character. There's an edit where Nolan transitions from a scene involving this character to an earlier point in his journey; juxtaposing the before and after to throw into emphasis the shocking change in his mental state. It's a powerful contrast.

Zimmer's score is also very effective. It begins with a suspenseful metronomic rhythm before eventually morphing into Elgar's 'Nimrod'; one of the most classically patriotic pieces of British music ever composed. A top notch cast is on hand that includes Tom Hardy, Mark Rylance and Kenneth Branagh, plus some uncredited voice work by Michael Caine. All of them do a great job. Even Harry Styles, the cast member I was most sceptical about, manages to acquit himself admirably. On a personal note, I also like that Nolan shot on location in Weymouth. I spent countless summers there as a child, and it was lovely to see it portrayed so beautifully on the big screen.

I imagine Dunkirk is the sort of film that will reward multiple viewings. I really need to see it a second time to fully understand the nonlinear sequencing of events. But based on my initial viewing, I  wholeheartedly recommend it. If this film doesn't win big at the Oscars, it's bound to sweep the Baftas. I haven't seen a British war film this good in years. A superb slice of post-Brexit patriotism and a wonderful addition to Nolan's filmography. Go see it.

[The Dark Knight]

Thanks for the review. I'll probably see this, and honestly, it's going to be refreshing to see a film that isn't comic book influenced or a reboot/remake. I know Dunkirk isn't a new thing when it comes to films, but you get what I mean.