DUNKIRK (2017)

Director:     Christopher Nolan

Writers:      Christopher Nolan

Actors:       Fionn Whitehead, Damien Bonnard, Aneurin Barnard, Tom Hardy, Kenneth Branagh, Mark Rylance

Christopher Nolan wrote and directed this movie to dramatize the evacuation of Allied soldiers who are surrounded by German forces during World War II.  There is literally no escape from the beaches of Dunkirk except for the military ships, which the Germans destroy in a barrage of air firepower.  Ultimately, an appeal is sent out to civilian boats to come to the rescue of over 300,000 soldiers stuck on the Dunkirk shores.  Hundreds of boats -- trawlers, lifeboats, pleasure yachts -- answered the call for help.

The movie focuses on half a dozen soldiers, each with his own agenda, but all motivated to survive the disastrous trap.  There are fine soul-searching moments for the soldiers, and the fact that most of them are not readily recognizable superstars makes each scene more real and visceral.  Mark Rylance, as owner of a fishing boat who cannot ignore the call for help, is quite wonderful as a humble man who makes heroic choices. 

There are many emotional moments in this movie.  As a director, Christopher Nolan is brilliant in depicting the horrible aftermath of bomb attacks, underwater as well as on ships and land.  Some of the frames are virtual artistic masterpieces of cinematography.

For me, the storyline was very difficult to follow.   Because I wasn’t clear as to what was really happening, I was frustrated and confused at times.  It might have been helpful for Kenneth Branagh to take a more active role in the film to clarify the events taking place.   Perhaps Nolan didn’t want to insult his audience with narrative, but I would have welcomed a little more back story.  Nevertheless, this is a powerful film, depicting how life-threatening circumstances bring out the worst and best in people.

GEN:  8   JUST:  N/A   HUVA:  8

http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0574229/?ref_=tt_cl_t7

TAGS:  Dunkirk, Christopher Nolan, Tom Hardy, Mark Rylance, Kenneth Branagh,   Fionn Whitehead, Damien Bonnard, Aneurin Barnard