Christopher Nolan is the director that brings this historic event to life in the new movie, aptly named, 'Dunkirk'.
Dunkirk. A small French town that to many is just a geographical spot but to 400'000 men it was hell on Earth. For those who know nothing about this landmark event in World War 2, Nolan enters you into the deathly experience which is enabled by the wonderfully chosen cast. Many stars feature throughout the 80 minute spectacle, such as Tom Hardy, Mark Rylance and Kenneth Branagh, all doing extremely well to capture the fright and grief these men would have experienced 77 years ago. I will delve deeper into my thoughts of the movie but don't worry I won't reveal any spoilers.
The biggest surprise from this movie is Harry Styles. Admittedly as soon as I heard that he had a part in the film I was doubtful, from being in a boy band to portraying a soldier in a blockbuster movie was quite a big leap. In any war movie there's a pressure to do the part justice as they are representing real life men who fought and died for our country and so if Harry did a bad job the audience would have come away talking about that and not the actual event. That was another reason I was a little annoyed he'd been cast as everyone was talking about him rather than the fascination in Nolan focusing a whole film on one war event. However, I have taken back everything I said about Harry because he was immense throughout. He probably has the most lines and he portrayed his character that purely that I forgot he was 'Harry Styles' and believed in his soldier persona. I have no doubt we'll be seeing a lot more of him on the big screen.
The main criticism the film has faced is that the audience don't have an emotional connection to a specific character, we don't learn many of the characters names even, but to me this was a clever decision made by Nolan. Throughout the film you feel as though these characters do represent the whole 400'000 men and to me that was more emotional. The way in which I think this is properly highlighted on screen is the fact that three characters, who are in a lot of scenes together, look very similar. This may just be a coincidence, but to me it highlighted that they were all the same. Just ordinary men in an extraordinary environment, see the picture below and see if you agree. Additionally it is more realistic not having the soldiers introduce themselves and telling each other their life stories as in a situation such as Dunkirk it would be the last thing on your mind.
The cinematography throughout the movie is breathtaking. It actually feels as though you are in the moment. Something that proves this is a veteran who went to the Dunkirk premiere. He was left in tears as he thought he'd 'never see that again'. He felt as though he was 20 again fighting for his life, that's how realistic and raw Nolan has shot this film. Using an abundance of extras, high tech shots in the air and water and choosing the most appropriate things the highlight in the chaos has made this film phenomenal.
If you're looking for a film that is action packed, true to life and is suspenseful Dunkirk is for you. Go and watch it.
A picture from the real event.
Dunkirk. A small French town that to many is just a geographical spot but to 400'000 men it was hell on Earth. For those who know nothing about this landmark event in World War 2, Nolan enters you into the deathly experience which is enabled by the wonderfully chosen cast. Many stars feature throughout the 80 minute spectacle, such as Tom Hardy, Mark Rylance and Kenneth Branagh, all doing extremely well to capture the fright and grief these men would have experienced 77 years ago. I will delve deeper into my thoughts of the movie but don't worry I won't reveal any spoilers.
The biggest surprise from this movie is Harry Styles. Admittedly as soon as I heard that he had a part in the film I was doubtful, from being in a boy band to portraying a soldier in a blockbuster movie was quite a big leap. In any war movie there's a pressure to do the part justice as they are representing real life men who fought and died for our country and so if Harry did a bad job the audience would have come away talking about that and not the actual event. That was another reason I was a little annoyed he'd been cast as everyone was talking about him rather than the fascination in Nolan focusing a whole film on one war event. However, I have taken back everything I said about Harry because he was immense throughout. He probably has the most lines and he portrayed his character that purely that I forgot he was 'Harry Styles' and believed in his soldier persona. I have no doubt we'll be seeing a lot more of him on the big screen.
The main criticism the film has faced is that the audience don't have an emotional connection to a specific character, we don't learn many of the characters names even, but to me this was a clever decision made by Nolan. Throughout the film you feel as though these characters do represent the whole 400'000 men and to me that was more emotional. The way in which I think this is properly highlighted on screen is the fact that three characters, who are in a lot of scenes together, look very similar. This may just be a coincidence, but to me it highlighted that they were all the same. Just ordinary men in an extraordinary environment, see the picture below and see if you agree. Additionally it is more realistic not having the soldiers introduce themselves and telling each other their life stories as in a situation such as Dunkirk it would be the last thing on your mind.
The cinematography throughout the movie is breathtaking. It actually feels as though you are in the moment. Something that proves this is a veteran who went to the Dunkirk premiere. He was left in tears as he thought he'd 'never see that again'. He felt as though he was 20 again fighting for his life, that's how realistic and raw Nolan has shot this film. Using an abundance of extras, high tech shots in the air and water and choosing the most appropriate things the highlight in the chaos has made this film phenomenal.
If you're looking for a film that is action packed, true to life and is suspenseful Dunkirk is for you. Go and watch it.
A picture from the real event.
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