Not a great war movie - just a 106-minute series of vignettes

Rating: 5/10 (22 July 2017)

I went expecting to see, as one critic put it, "the greatest war film ever made." I was disappointed. Not only is it NOT the greatest war film ever made, I'm not really sure what it is.
And, if you're not familiar with the Dunkirk evacuation, you're probably going to be a bit lost. The movie begins with the soldiers lined up on the beach, and offers just a few expository comments about how they ended up there. There are no visual cues to help you understand the magnitude of the challenges they face. You never get the feeling that you have almost 400,000 men stranded on a beach, or that they're being attacked by hundreds of (rather that two or three) aircraft.
Putting that aside, I had three major problems with the movie:
First, I felt like I had walked in during the middle of the movie. Nothing is really put into context, nor do you get to know any of the characters. Instead, it feels like you're watching a series of vignettes, or perhaps a montage, from another film, albeit for nearly two hours.
Next, the evacuation involved 340,000 men, hundreds of aircraft, and about 860 vessels, many of which were "little ships" that sailed from Ramsgate. Unfortunately, the movie never steps back long enough to provide a sense of the scale for the operation, and instead just shows a few boats and aircraft and a handful of men.
Finally, while thousands of men were killed, the film never lets you feel that on a visceral level. When a soldier or sailor is killed, with a few exceptions, they merely fall to the ground. No one is ever grievously wounded, screaming in pain, or making any commotion at all. Contrast that to the opening sequence of Saving Private Ryan, which is probably the most intense battle scene ever filmed.
The cast is excellent, but has very little dialog or character development with which to work. Will Attenborough, grandson of Richard Attenborough, plays an RAF pilot, while singer Harry Styles plays the son of Mark Rylance, a "little boat" captain. (Rylance could give an amazing performance just reading a phone book.)
The film was shot mostly in 65 / 70 mm and is being screened in 125 70mm-capable theaters. The film is incredibly loud, and veterans of the Dunkirk evacuation noted the movie was louder than the actual battle.
I'm not sure what to recommend. If you're looking for a great war movie, this isn't it. If you don't like war movies (like Marie​) this won't change your mind. Maybe wait for it to stream.