Dunkirk (2017 Film) Review
Dunkirk stars Fionn Whitehead, Harry Styles, Kenneth Branagh, Mark Rylance as well as Christopher Nolan film regulars, Cillian Murphy and Tom Hardy.
Checking out the Kids-In-Mind overview is a high recommendation of mine. I would not advise taking kids under twelve to see Dunkirk. This is a very violent, intense movie that kids younger than twelve are not gonna enjoy. There's no blood or gore like most war films, but Christopher Nolan made this film as intense as can be and young children aren't gonna enjoy that.
My review of Dunkirk is gonna be different from my other reviews. In my other reviews, I go character by character and conclude with the quality of action, effects, and score. While I will touch on those subjects, this review is gonna focus more on the story structure, the expertly crafted action, Hans Zimmer's score, as well as Christopher Nolan himself. I'll mention the characters and which actors provided the better performances first as a starting point before I get to those subjects.
The Characters
When you go to see Dunkirk, you'll find out that the characters are very few and there isn't a lot of dialogue for a few portions of the film. Not only that, but the characters don't have any backstory, arch, or anything that gives them any particular emotional weight.
The film is more focused about telling its story then it is getting to know any of the character's history. You only know the characters by what they do in the movie. That's the point of the film. It's about this event and it is structured such that you shouldn't need to give anyone an arch or any emotional weight, because it's already in the film when it begins. You automatically care about these soldiers, who are just young men trying to get home and that's what makes the civilians coming to the rescue so compelling and inspiring. The film goes into the psychology of the soldiers and seeing how they react to being in such a terrifying environment. It's realistic and it's done in a very powerful way.
Because none of these characters are given any history, it's a little unfair to pick favorite characters, but in terms of performances, I enjoyed Mark Rylance and Tom Hardy the best.
With Dunkirk, this makes Tom Hardy's third appearance in a Christopher Nolan film and the second time that he has his face covered up for the entire film. I mainly put Tom Hardy here because of his skills as a pilot and also because, with the combination of IMAX, his aerial dogfights made for some of my favorite sequences of the film. You cannot deny his unbelievable skills as a pilot. His handling of the plane was impressive, as was his combat skills. Part of me wonders if Tom Hardy actually flew that plane. I would like to think so, but part of me believes that it was just a professional pilot when Tom Hardy wasn't in the frame. He may not have had a lot of dialogue, but that doesn't keep me from putting him as one of my favorites.
Mark Rylance has a different situation. While Tom Hardy became one of my favorites due to his skill and engaging scenes, I liked Mark Rylance purely because of his performance. He plays such a likable, kind, and intelligible character. He has the most lines out of anyone in the film. That may not be saying much, but Mark Rylance uses his lines in a meaningful and often impactful way. Impactful, because you know that he's speaking the truth about the situations that unfold throughout the film. His more optimistic spirit brings something uplifting to a film that's intense and often depressing.
Other cast members like Cillian Murphy and Kenneth Branagh are fine with what they have. Their characters don't have much of an impact on the story. They're there just for filler I believe. I don't think they were necessary at all, but they didn't bring the film down for me. As for Harry Styles, who's from the One Direction boy band, he turns out to be a mini antagonist. He's there for a couple of scenes and has more lines than most of this cast does, but I found nothing memorable about his character. I know he was big deal when he was initially cast, however, after seeing him in the film, it's hard for me to understand why he was such a big deal when cast. The only good thing that came from his inclusion was hearing about Christopher Nolan being unaware of his fame when he was cast.
The film is more focused about telling its story then it is getting to know any of the character's history. You only know the characters by what they do in the movie. That's the point of the film. It's about this event and it is structured such that you shouldn't need to give anyone an arch or any emotional weight, because it's already in the film when it begins. You automatically care about these soldiers, who are just young men trying to get home and that's what makes the civilians coming to the rescue so compelling and inspiring. The film goes into the psychology of the soldiers and seeing how they react to being in such a terrifying environment. It's realistic and it's done in a very powerful way.
Because none of these characters are given any history, it's a little unfair to pick favorite characters, but in terms of performances, I enjoyed Mark Rylance and Tom Hardy the best.With Dunkirk, this makes Tom Hardy's third appearance in a Christopher Nolan film and the second time that he has his face covered up for the entire film. I mainly put Tom Hardy here because of his skills as a pilot and also because, with the combination of IMAX, his aerial dogfights made for some of my favorite sequences of the film. You cannot deny his unbelievable skills as a pilot. His handling of the plane was impressive, as was his combat skills. Part of me wonders if Tom Hardy actually flew that plane. I would like to think so, but part of me believes that it was just a professional pilot when Tom Hardy wasn't in the frame. He may not have had a lot of dialogue, but that doesn't keep me from putting him as one of my favorites.
Mark Rylance has a different situation. While Tom Hardy became one of my favorites due to his skill and engaging scenes, I liked Mark Rylance purely because of his performance. He plays such a likable, kind, and intelligible character. He has the most lines out of anyone in the film. That may not be saying much, but Mark Rylance uses his lines in a meaningful and often impactful way. Impactful, because you know that he's speaking the truth about the situations that unfold throughout the film. His more optimistic spirit brings something uplifting to a film that's intense and often depressing.
Other cast members like Cillian Murphy and Kenneth Branagh are fine with what they have. Their characters don't have much of an impact on the story. They're there just for filler I believe. I don't think they were necessary at all, but they didn't bring the film down for me. As for Harry Styles, who's from the One Direction boy band, he turns out to be a mini antagonist. He's there for a couple of scenes and has more lines than most of this cast does, but I found nothing memorable about his character. I know he was big deal when he was initially cast, however, after seeing him in the film, it's hard for me to understand why he was such a big deal when cast. The only good thing that came from his inclusion was hearing about Christopher Nolan being unaware of his fame when he was cast.
Christopher Nolan
While not his best work, it's about time that Christopher Nolan gets some award recognition for his work. In my previous review, which was for War for the Planet of the Apes, I included the fact that Andy Serkis deserves his long overdue Oscar with his last turn as Caesar. Christopher Nolan is in the same boat. How is it possible that a man who creates films that both critics and audiences love, gets shunned so many times? It seems like with his past few films, critics and audiences alike have lauded him for his ability to direct such complex and thought-provoking films. Yet when it comes to the Oscars, he's name is nowhere to be seen in the Best Director category. While I haven't seen all his films and Dunkirk isn't my favorite of his, he certainly deserves an Oscar right about now.
What Christopher Nolan does great with Dunkirk is that he tests himself and easily succeeds. Unlike a lot of films, Dunkirk isn't told in a linear storyline. Instead, Christopher Nolan takes three different sides of this one event, tells their side of the story, and in the end, all of them are weaved together for one great conclusion. Many films have tried to do this, but Dunkirk is the first to actually succeed. I got a little confused in the start of it, but I quickly adapted to the way Christopher Nolan was trying to make his movie and it works one hundred percent.
One slight criticism I have is that the movie felt a little too long. Yes, it's Christopher Nolan's shortest film clocking in at an hour and forty-six minutes, but with the way it was paced in the middle act, things got slow. I didn't check my watch, the film wasn't that slow, but I felt that the movie needed to pick up the pace a tad and it did. I just wish I didn't have that feeling. Maybe seeing it a second time would get me to understand more, that's not uncommon for a Christopher Nolan film, but for now, I'd say that it dragged for a few moments.
An IMAX Must-See
Of all the IMAX experiences I've had this year, this one has been my favorite. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 was an IMAX 3D treat providing a terrific moviegoing experience. While I was and still am grateful for being able to see Wonder Woman in that same format, I felt that the 3D part of that was lacking and unnecessary. This time, Dunkirk is worth every penny you spend to see it in IMAX. It's a requirement in fact. Yeah you could see it the regular format, but I'm telling you that this is the IMAX experience of the year. I'm sure that no other film that's released in IMAX this year is gonna come close to this film.
Christopher Nolan has said multiple times that he believes that IMAX is the best way to watch movies. He films these movies specifically for IMAX and that's why his movies are a feast for the eyes when you see it in that suggested format. The action, music, and sound are all amplified with this inclusion.
Action and Score
This is a war movie so the action is bountiful and very well-executed. Another talent of Christopher Nolan's is that he does things the practical way. In case you're wondering why there's no section that focuses on the effects, that's because I don't think there was much CGI in this film, if at all. The explosions, the plane sequences, and the stunts seem very real. They're are simply breathtaking and very intense. From the first gunshot, you know that you're in for something different from any other action film that you've seen. You can't help but dread the next shot that's gonna be fired. It's give you this unceasing feeling and that's something I didn't anticipate from this film. Whenever the film had its aerial dogfights, they were simply sights to behold. I was grinning and on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next.
It should come as no surprise that once again, Hans Zimmer crafts another great score for a Christopher Nolan film. Hans Zimmer seems to be the best these days when he's combining with Christopher Nolan. They do really good work together. Of the scores that Hans Zimmer has done with Christopher Nolan, Interstellar may be my favorite of theirs and possibly my favorite Hans Zimmer score to date.
A lot of people are calling this score Hans Zimmer's best. While it does a lot of things right, it doesn't quite hit those heights that Interstellar's score reached, let alone the scores that were done in The Dark Knight Trilogy. To me, I find this score to have great blood-pumping themes that features a mix of other great instruments that are blended together great, but not even close to being my favorite score of Hans Zimmer's. I do applaud Hans Zimmer for trying new things with incorporating some techno-style beats along with ticks from a clock.
Grade: A
While not my favorite film of the year, Dunkirk does make it high on my current top ten list. We'll see where it lands by the end of the year and if it's still on my list. I cannot recommend this film enough. It makes for a wonderful time at the cinemas. In case you're wondering, there's nothing you need to research before seeing the film. It helps to know a little bit about the event before seeing the film, but it does a fine job explaining things, which makes researching the event almost unnecessary.
So that's my review of Dunkirk. if you saw the film, what did you think of it and my review. If you haven't, do you now plan on seeing it. Let me know those thoughts in the comments section below, share this with your friends, and let me know what film you want me to review next. Thanks for reading, I'm the Film Fanatic, bye-bye.
So that's my review of Dunkirk. if you saw the film, what did you think of it and my review. If you haven't, do you now plan on seeing it. Let me know those thoughts in the comments section below, share this with your friends, and let me know what film you want me to review next. Thanks for reading, I'm the Film Fanatic, bye-bye.
I havent seem it yet, however, Im very excited to and even more now that I have read your review.
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