Review of Dunkirk (2017) by James L — 02 Sep 2017
The real history was of course better, and can be read in a score of good books.
Nolan's melodrama attempts what The Longest Day did so well: to tell the story by weaving a number of other stories together. Unfortunately, Nolan hasn't quite managed the technique: the miracle of Dunkirk gets lost in a flurry of stories that are hard to attach to emotionally. The great event is seen through a cadre of oily, cowardly privates, their preternaturally British officers (who seem to come from another movie), heroic RAF guardian angels; and one (count 'em, ONE) of the civilian sailors who pulled off a miracle: Mark Rylance is so good in this role that it's almost a comprehensible choice, but not quite.
The movie's beautifully shot and amazingly edited to weave the stories together. Hans Zimmer rightly understands the film is a melodrama and appropriately overdoes the score.
The film is also inspired by Saving Private Ryan (the cowardly private is a touchstone in that film, too, though there it makes some dramatic sense); and by The Dark Knight Rises, where Tom Hardy is also put behind a mask and still manages to act brilliantly.
This review of Dunkirk (2017) was written by James L on 02 Sep 2017.
Dunkirk has generally received very positive reviews.
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