Extremely Well-Made, Boring Movie

Rating: 6/10 (24 February 2018)

It's boredom made into art: The silent sequence at the start of the movie is nothing short of classical, despite the obsession with taking dumps. It's well-filmed, well-acted, well-directed - you know, a well-oiled machine.
And yet there's little to see: Apart from one Me109 here and there (did German pilots always lose in dogfight as pictured by Hollywood) and a couple of helmeted guys in the background at the end, there's no enemy - it it rather like an obstacle course on a trapped, battlefield-like scenery. We see all of these soldiers with their rifles waiting in line on the beach without any hint why they're such a bunch of cowardly wrecks.
Sure, history has an explanation, but nothing that the neophyte can see here. The point is futhermore un-credible when the "dangers" seem pretty mundane, like those bombers dropping something more akin to grenades that bombs. The film would have gained to use some more CGI at the right places, as modern ships and modern buildings on the beach do help shaking off the illusion.
I wouldn't even classify as as a war movie, but rather a war drama. There is no fighting in it except for the aerial sequences. And yet it is pleasant to watch, the picture's nice and the actors are great.