Dunkirk: While in one place all hope might seem lost, in another place someone is making sure hope remains intact.

Rating: 6/10 (21 August 2017)

Dunkirk: While in one place all hope might seem lost, in another place someone is making sure hope remains intact.
Dunkirk, is the life story, shown in land, air and sea, of 400,000 brave soldiers who couldn't make it home and are readily waiting by the French beach for the British military to come pick them up. Both, British troops and Nazi troops give a start to this movie. The British army finds it stuck on the beach and with their enemy's threat roaming them. On one side, the Spitfires offer their help on the skies by taking out the enemy's planes. On the other side, ships filled with soldiers and civilians are sailing towards Dunkirk, in order to rescue the troops that remain alive. The movie occurs in several places simultaneously; The pier: For one week, the things happening in the beach of Dunkirk in France start a week prior to the zone's evacuation by the military personnel. The sea: One day prior to the troops' retreat, civilian and military boats are summoned to the rescue of the troops stuck on the French beach. The skies: One hour prior to the military retreat, the aerial battle between the British and the Nazis. It's important to highlight that in every place the movie takes you to; a specific character gives that moment its life and relevance. In the pier, Tommy, a British soldier is stuck on the beach alongside thousands of French and British troops. While on the beach, Tommy finds another soldier burying a body. This soldier, later on reveals his true French identity and it's named Gibson by the British peloton. Tommy and Gibson enter the first ship, the one that hits the pier, with a wounded soldier on a stretcher and save the third soldier of the crew, Alex. Tommy, Gibson and Alex enter a second boat which ends up being torpedoed by Nazis. However, Gibson refused to enter into the dining hall because he couldn't afford to raise any suspicion by the fact that he was a French soldier passing as a British one. Gibson ends up saving Tommy and Alex's lives after the torpedo hit, which ends up saving Gibson's own life. It's time to analyse now what's going on in British waters, where the most influential character is the ethical Mr. Dawson, owner of a fleet of boats for entertainment purposes, comes into play. He's a former navy member and father of two kids, one whom is already killed by the war. His helper, a young boy, ends up going with him and sadly being killed after an altercation with a mentally ill soldier they rescued in the waters. Mr. Dawson is a guy who is as ethical as they come, for him; the first thing is to do what's right. He does not only care about his business or being safe, his ethics do not allow him to do that, he feels the need to help others and use his stance of privilege to do so first and foremost. He is socially aware before anything else. The third place where things occur is in the skies, The British send 3 pilots, two of them who die rather soon and Farrier, played by Tom Hardy who becomes the biggest hero. Their mission is to prevent Germans to attack the beach so people can evacuate successfully and safely. Farrier ends up taking most German air crafts by him and ends up clearing the beach from aerial threats all by his lonesome after his mates end up dying. Another ethical character, his duty before anything else, including his life. To conclude with, Dunkirk is about accepting, it's about honor. It's about being grateful, there's honor in surviving, even though you don't come off as victorious from a battle and are forced to retreat, your bravery is enough to be deemed as a hero. And on the other side, being a hero does not guarantee your survival. Both concepts, of heroism are related in plenty and multiple ways.