A Great War Story

Rating: 9/10 (27 April 2018)

This is the story of a battle. It is not about the men in that battle. It is also about all battles.
Some have criticized "Dunkirk" because of its lack of character development. Other films have done a good job of following (developing) characters as they negotiate scenes of war. But this film chooses to focus almost exclusively on the chaos of war. Still, it is not without characters, and director Nolan has chosen to focus on a handful of individuals to explain the ways that fortunes can change amid chaos.
He also uses a non-linear timeline. For some, Dunkirk stretched over interminable weeks. For others, their stories were encompassed by one harrowing day. Still others joined the fray only for hours. But all of them were subject to the drama of a countdown, whether it was due to small windows of opportunity, the unpredictable weather, or logistics.
Hans Zimmer's music certainly drives the drama and helps accentuate the timelines that are at play. The soundtrack has a driving cadence overlaid by sounds that are like screaming sirens.
The action is poetic. With minimal dialogue, we witness the transformative nature of war, the impossible choices, the drive for survival, the inhumanity that war requires. At times, the action is moving; at other times, it is overwhelming.
Despite what some have written about this film, it is very true to the reality of Dunkirk. For example, the cranes that stand above the city actually were there.
Seeing this film drove me to read about the precursors to this action. And to explore the stories of those who actually were there on that final day. Finally, it led me to better appreciate the great significance of that day in the history of the world.