Dunkirk (2017) [Movie Review]


Dir: Christopher Nolan
Starring: Fionn Whitehead, Tom Glynn-Carney, Jack Lowden, Harry Styles, James D’Arcy, Kenneth Branagh, Mark Rylance and Tom Hardy.
Dur: 1 hr 46 mins
Genre: War Drama
Rating: 8/10

Ever since I watched the trailer, I have been waiting on pins and needles for this film. When I finally got my hands on it, I was restless till I sat down to watch it and I write this review with a great sense of relief as I have not only satisfied my nagging urge but am also incredibly satisfied with the film. Chris Nolan has a knack for intriguing film making and he once again delivers an absolute thriller. Dunkirk depicts the evacuation of allied soldiers, particularly the British, during World War II. The film has an ensemble cast and is a British, American, French and Dutch co-production. Needless, to say it is also quite an ‘allied’ effort.

It portrays the evacuation from three perspectives: land, sea and air. It has little dialogue (Nolan wanted it that way so as to create suspense from cinematography and music) but still provides a thrilling experience. It has extensive practical effects, and employed thousands of extras as well as historic boats from the evacuation and period aeroplanes. The film has been praised by critics for its direction, screenplay and music score. Metacritic scored it at 94 with users having rated it 8.4 out of 10. It was rated the third best movie of the year 2017.

Watching this film transports you to that time in human history when life was cheap and war was the order of the day. We endure with the forlorn soldiers the angst of being stranded and cornered on foreign shores with no way of going home. The film lives the soldiers agonizing efforts to get home safely and their repeated failure due to enemy attacks. The drama is heart-tugging and the suspense taut. The young protagonists carry the film well and do a commendable job without dialogue. I loved this film and for me it was one of the best films of the year. Wish you have the same experience.

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