The kind of film that makes some real noise in the world.

Rating: 10/10 (13 January 2020)

1917 was based off Sam Mendes' grandfather's account of the First World War and the film proved to be an unbelievably powerful reflection of the horrors the world faced after Franz Ferdinand's assassination in 1914. You can feel the desperation, angst and terror the soldiers faced at the time: and the film's use of one-shot-takes gives the viewer the impression they're actually there WITH the battalion of British Allied Soldiers. It's ridiculously well-done whilst being very harrowing stuff, and it all really happened (at least the tension around Operation Alberich was firmly rooted in history).
This film's like a one-shot Dunkirk but tries capturing the dehumanizing qualities of war from works like All Quiet on the Western Front and War Horse. 1917 is a war movie that gives a new perspective on tried-and-true historical cinema, and it's World War One setting is oddly fitting for today's political dilemmas, mistrust of authority and national interests clashing with the individual soldier being used as a pawn to achieve whatever means to an end. Historical stuff aside, the bunker booby-trap scene with the rat was set up beautifully and the way this film was made gives that scene undiluted tension and fright when you see what happens on-screen. Seriously, that scene might become the stuff of cinematic legend and used as a how-to guide on delivering unexpected shocks from an unlikely place.
1917 is pretty damn solid cinema and the direction delivers a lot to the character of the film's story itself: it's one continuous journey that's as relentless as war itself and its immersion is groundbreaking stuff.
5/5 stars. It's a great experience with an impactful story.