Will Go Down In History As One Of The Best War Movies Ever Made

Rating: 9/10 (10 January 2020)

One must imagine Sam Mendes wanted to make this film after watching Dunkirk. Mendes not only makes a film similar to Dunkirk but also rectifies the flaws we saw in it. The cast would give you an impression that it's an ensemble but Andrew Scott, Benedict Cumberbatch, Colin Firth, Richard Madden and Mark Strong just appear in very short cameos.
The characters in the film aren't very strong but still George Mackay and Dean-Charles Chapman give commendable performances. Unlike in Dunkirk we do not see the stories of multiple characters here, the entire film is from the POV of lance corporals Scofield and Blake. On a technical level this film is absolutely stunning, Thomas Newman, Roger Deakins and Lee Smith deserve as much applause as Sam Mendes. It is bound to win Oscars in atleast 4 or 5 of the technical categories.
The main plus point of the film is the way the emotional content balances the action. Mendes gives huge scope for the soldiers to vent out their frustrations and loss. One could just wish we had more scenes of the French nurse with Scofield.