Dunkirk : Movie Review

Christopher Nolan is a name you can bank on for an entertaining cinema experience, and when you add Tom Hardy to the billing, you know you can expect at least some quality acting in the story. But Dunkirk is so much more than that, especially to the British viewers. After all, this is a film about what was one of the most significant albeit weakest moments of their participation in the second World War.

It would help to clarify at this point, that this film 'Dunkirk' is not a documentary of the events that happened, instead is a cinematic representation of them for the purpose of entertainment. It is not a history lesson but it does have a certain patriotic tone to it in a very British sense.

Nolan's 'Dunkirk' is a relentless and distressing tale of survival surrounding the battle of Dunkirk in 1940, wherein some 400,000 allied troops had been cornered by the Nazi forces on the beach and were being picked off by bombers and fighter planes, like fish in a barrel. Eventually, more than 300,000 of those troops were evacuated, a large portion of them by a fleet comprising of hundreds of small pleasure boats and fishing vessles from across the channel, piloted by civilians.

The film uses three narrative timelines to show three different aspects of the events, brilliantly interwoven and eventually merged by Nolan as the plot progresses. It starts with a young British trooper by the name of Tommy (played by newcomer Fionn Whitehead) who is amongst those stranded on the beach; then we are introduced to ace R.A.F. fighter pilot Farrier (Tom Hardy); followed by an old-timer who is among the civilian responders, a Brit captaining his boat, Mr Dawson (Mark Rylance).

It is no Hollywood action hurrah. This film delivers the sense of neverending despair that is the struggle to survive against the odds where humanity and decency seem to be an unaffordable luxury. Personally, I have always had a slight fear of drowning at sea and this film has only deepened it, also considering the fragile political state of the world right now. Anyway, back to the film.

Dunkirk is not about making a polticial or social statement, or glorifying what was one of the most embarrasing moments in World War II for the Allied troops. It is a window into what those events did to people, about the fighting spirit of the citizens and the triumph of will. Amongst all of it, there is also a constant hope which gives people the strength to not give up in their fight for survival.

Brilliant and down-to-earth performances by all the lead cast with a stunning lineup of support cast as well, including Jack Lowden, Cillian Murphy and Anuerin Barnard. The action scenes are brilliantly involving, even in 2D, especially if you watch it in IMAX. Cinematographer Hotye Van Hoytema has truly crafted a visual masterpiece, particularly the aerial dogfight sequences. The background score and music by Hans Zimmer sets the right tones throughout the duration of the film as well.

Final rating for 'Dunkirk'? 8.5 out of 10 jam toasts.