Historical drama of Great Britain's political will to resist Nazi Germany

Rating: 9/10 (22 December 2017)

The World War II historical event of the British evacuation of it's army from the French beaches of Dunkirk has been covered from the military aspect several times over the past decades. DARKEST HOUR fills the void over what transpired in the British government over that time period, how Great Britain teetered between an armistice with Nazi Germany that would have been a de facto negotiated surrender and continued national resistance. As the movie depicts, it was a close thing.
First of all, the television commercial preview gives a somewhat misleading perception of 'Darkest Hour' as a more traditional war movie. But that is not the case. The movie is almost wholly human drama back in London amidst the center of political power encompassing Parliament, the House of Commons, the intrigue between its most powerful men, and the involvement of King George V. This movie is not suited for perhaps for younger people but for older fans of historical drama. Make no mistake, it is a high-quality human drama theatrical production and well-worth watching. It would be too dull for children, teens, and young adults.
As the historical drama unfolds, the populace and the government of Great Britain are shaken and fearful in May 1940 as the German Wehrmacht steamrolls over Western Europe, crushes the numerically superior but poorly-led French Army, and forces the British Expeditionary Army reeling back against the sea at the beaches of Dunkirk. But that is just the backdrop for the real movie.
Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, a secretly dying man, his appeasement policies towards Nazi Germany a catastrophic failure, is forced from power. In hindsight, the history books might be too harsh on Chamberlain as an appeaser. Closer examination of contemporary history shows that he was highly supported by the British government, the populace, and the king in the two years leading up to war. In the late 1930s, the once highly nationalistic and jingoistic British and French are a thing of the past. The human meat grinder of WWI have wholly transformed both nations into pacifists, almost at any cost. Despite rearmament by the U.K. and France, both are still unprepared for major war in late 1939. A highly respected, experienced and powerful statesman, Viscount Halifax, is considered by many to be the natural successor.
In historical hindsight it was fortunate for the United Kingdom and for the world that Halifax declined the prestigious job of prime minister. Had it been peacetime, no doubt he would have accepted. But it was desperate national times. Halifax, and many in the British government at the time saw things pessimistically and for legitimate reasons. It was true, Great Britain was still unprepared and underequipped to oppose Nazi Germany. Logically, some kind of peace agreement did make sense. True, but as Great Britain had suffered a serious military defeat on the continent, any peace treaty then and there would no doubt be disadvantageous. Hitler would undoubtedly have demanded harsh terms from the British government. Why not? He was the winner at the time. Halifax, one of the leading members of the peace settlement with Hitler, understood this better than anyone besides Chamberlain and Churchill. An ambitious, highly intelligent man, Halifax was astute enough to recognize history would hold him responsible for any negotiated surrender with Germany, which is what any 'armistice' would have been in May 1940. Halifax did not want that. He declined the prime minister job which went to second choice, compromise candidate, Winston Churchill. Had Churchill agreed with Halifax's demand for peace terms with Hitler, it would have been Churchill's entire fault in the history books. And history would have been changed forever. The movie dramatically shows how even Churchill himself wavered at the critical moment, when he stood alone in defiance of Nazi Germany. Churchill held to his instincts, his natural stubbornness, his unwavering faith in the greatness and power of Great Britain which he witnessed and participated in as a young man, the timely moral and political support of King George V, and his well-advised talks with the British common people. By accident, Churchill's earlier reluctant 'implied' assent to Halifax and Chamberlain to explore peace negotiations through mediator, fascist Italy, got both men off his back temporarily, giving Churchill more breathing space and room to act. The crowning moment arrived in the House of Commons when Churchill rallied all parties, essentially the entire government, behind him to continue the war against Nazi Germany. Chamberlain gave his quiet assent (he would pass away 6 months later) and Viscount Halifax fell from power, later to be dispatched by Churchill to the USA to purchase armaments and supplies for the national war effort. And the rest is destiny and final victory on May 8, 1945.