Could have been better

Rating: 6/10 (22 July 2017)

As other reviews here describe in great depth, Nolan has successfully implemented the best of visuals and sound effects. However, the hype created by trailers falls pretty short of describing a genuinely intense and desperate evacuation that took place during the whole battle.
At first, the trailers looked as if the Commonwealth Army fought a desperate retreat to 'home'; however, what we see are repetitive scenes that of a handful of Stuka divers getting destroyed by a group of just three RAF fighters, only one of which keeps on the skies while the other two survive on the same escape boat.
Its not the setting or the diversion of the director's traditional way of telling one of history's most important events as an all out war (like what one could remember from The Enemy at the Gates or Saving Private Ryan), but the lack of depth in showing the true nature of that hasty evacuation that took place when news had spread that German forces from all sides would be surrounding the allied landing within hours. What we see instead is anonymous soldiers simply changing boats from ships and vice versa, and finally reach 'home sweet home' without really showing much of the real blood that was spilled in order to protect those who were to be evacuated. So, although the movie launches off nicely, it goes monotone within 45 minutes.
I wish Nolan had shown the French lines that there were holding their ground from the Germans and relate all that with the evacuation that was taking place. Its just too plain.