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Have you ever wondered why some critics review films? They don't even seem to like movies that much from what they write. I LOVE movies, and think about them long after the last credits roll across the screen. My reviews are meant to inform, entertain and never have a spoiler.
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Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Dunkirk

Dunkirk has been nominated for Best Picture, Director, Cinematography, Film Editing, Original Score, Production Design, Sound Editing, and Sound Mixing at the Academy Awards. There are no acting nominations among these, and that’s because this is a war movie with lots of action and sometimes long drawn out scenes of waiting. Waiting to see if a soldier will escape detection by the enemy, waiting to see if the boats sailing across the English Channel will arrive in time to save the Allied troops, and waiting to see if any RAF pilots will prevail in the skies over the Germans. The historic evacuation of Allied soldiers from certain death by the Nazis, who have them surrounded and pinned in on the beach, occurs in May 1940.

The film is rated PG-13 for intense war experience and some language. I will first provide you with a few pointers to make your viewing of Dunkirk, if you haven’t already seen it, more enjoyable and less frustrating for you.

Number one: Turn on the subtitles on your TV. I am shamefaced to admit that I have difficulty hearing what British actors are saying due to their accents. Additionally, with the near constant drone of airplanes, boat engines, and screaming men, I had trouble hearing the dialogue. You will thank me for this tip if you’re watching the film at home.

Number two: At the beginning of the movie, the “Mole” is referred to. I looked this up and the mole is a long concrete jetty that protects a beach. It is not referring to a spy. Knowing this helps you understand what Commander Bolton (Kenneth Branagh) is talking about when he describes the difficulty of getting any large craft close enough to shore to take on any men. The Nazi bombing had rendered the harbor useless, and the only way large ships could get close enough to shore to rescue anyone was by sidling up to one of the two moles.

Number three: The film alternates between three points of view during the relatively short time of the Dunkirk rescues. These are labeled at the beginning of the film. The “Mole” scenes on the beaches of France take place over the space of one week. The scenes at sea where the British civilian craft are deployed to rescue the troops encompasses one day. The planes flying overhead take one hour. If you understand this when you watch, you can see how these three points of view move forward to meet near the end of the film.

I liked Dunkirk. The writer/director Christopher Nolan did a good job showing what it may have been like for the three groups of men, and a few women who were nurses or were on board some of the ships that came for the rescue. The musical score with its percussive tones, composed by Hans Zimmer, accompanied the film’s action well. It is a different type of war movie, in a good way. I recommend that you see Dunkirk.

6 comments:

  1. I too was confused at first with the three concurrent story lines, but realized that they did explain that at the start of each story. Once you realize that and how all three stories meet in the third act of the film, you see the complexity of the screenwriting of this film. And yet it didn't get an Oscar nomination in this category? It is definitely one of those films that you need to watch a second time.

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    1. Good to hear from you Adam! I agree; Dunkirk was overlooked for a Best Screenwriting award when it should have been nominated. Hope to see your reviews in April for A-Z Blogging Challenge!

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  2. Hi Sue - I loved the film, and I'm sure will enjoy it more a second time around ... the time frame element of an hour in the sky, 7 days on land, and a day on the water ... put together in one telling. It takes some thinking about the conditions in 1940 and what they were up against ... but it's great - cheers Hilary

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    1. Thanks for your comments. I was curious about your take on Dunkirk. Glad you liked it. It's an important film.

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  3. What I like most about your review is your reference to "waiting." I didn't think about in that way until after I read post. There was little else these soldiers could do and it must have been an awful feeling knowing they were sitting ducks. It was a different kind of war event in that, with the exception of the RAF pilots, the shooting was mostly one sided.

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    1. Yes, I thought the film really allowed us to see what it must have been like for the soldiers who found themselves in the horrible situation of being surrounded by the enemy with no ready escape route. Thanks for commenting!

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