An experience

Rating: 9/10 (9 August 2017)

So anyone who has seen Nolan's previous films know that he has a particular niche, i.e. everything being displayed and shot on a grand scale, characters delivering sweeping philosophical soliloquys and so forth. He definitely has a formula.
However, while the sense of scale is still present in this film, the character interaction is fairly minimal, which some people may view as a criticism but for me personally, it only allows you to become immersed in the setting that little bit easier.
So, obviously, this film is set during WWII and tells the story of the Dunkirk evacuation, one of the events that took place during the war that was arguably instrumental in the Allies getting back on their feet and fighting back against the Nazis. As I said earlier, while the use of character studies takes a major back seat here, the film is compensated by its utilization of breathtaking shots and stellar sound design that really takes you into the moment.
Between aerial dogfights, capsizing ships and the overall fear of the young British soldiers shown on screen, Nolan succeeds in showing us the general sense of peril and fear felt by those present during the battle.
Once again, the casting in Nolan's film is excellent, although I have to say I was initially skeptical when I heard that Harry Styles was brought on board, thinking that he'd drop a new single mid-skirmish, à la Ed Sheeran in Game of Thrones, but I digress. Styles actually did pretty well in his role.
It was also interesting that most of the characters, particularly the soldiers, are rarely, if at all, referred to by name. Even to the point where I watched the credits and saw Cillian Murphy simply credited as 'Shivering Man'. That being said, given that this was an evacuation mission to rescue around 400,000 soldiers, it's just as well, in a way, that they weren't bogged down in exposition learning hundreds of names.
This film is merely about the event rather than any character story. The composition of shots and sound design pulls you in for the ride, and for me personally, it sucked me in to the scene very effectively.
Definite recommendation from me.