Where realism and poetry intertwine

Rating: 9/10 (20 January 2020)

1917 starts with two soldier boys sitting by a tree, passing the little time they have before their division is once again called into action. From that moment, we follow them through a relatively short mission, but a very intense one. Mendes is a master here. He has a way to show the horrors of war that is different from other war films. Instead of relying on visually strong moments of death, instead of showing how evil human beings can be, and instead of requiring from his actors emotions of extreme fear, sadness and horror, he approaches all of it in a more realistic way. He relies on the small and more introspective feelings that our two protagonists feel during their journey, and requires from his actors only a portrayal of two innocent boys who have to go through hell in order to achieve something. By doing this, we see the horrors of war as being how that affects people in a deeper emotional level. We see all the apathy, regret, disappointment and frustration that they have to endure due to the realities of war. Death, however horrific it might be, is only one part of it, and what stays with those who survived is a set of feelings and memories that is much more frightening, and which we as viewers are invited to feel alongside our main characters. Mendes also has the sensibility to show every single character in the film as a human being, and by doing so, he expands the whole narrative of good vs evil that is usually portrayed in war films, to a more complex and realistic one, one of empathy vs apathy, power vs powerlessness, humanity vs humanity itself.
About the cinematography, one of the most broadly discussed aspects of this film is how Deakins films everything as if it was one shot. And it is indeed an amazing technical achievement, one which certainly adds to the feeling of absolute immersion. But Deakins does a lot more than that in this film. He is able to use these immersion techniques combined with beautifully lighted shots, sensible camera movement and, in a few key moments, an almost ethereal atmosphere (which is significantly brought up to another level by an amazing soundtrack). What he achieves with this is a mix of realism and poetry that adds an extra layer to the film, which would otherwise be remembered simply by its technical accomplishments.