What Could Have Been

Rating: 7/10 (24 July 2017)

On a technical level Dunkirk is one of the most impressive movies ever made but the ridiculous lack of dialogue makes the movie very unbelievable. Similar to "Thin Red Line" in this truly is an art house film unabashedly demonstrating both Malick's and Nolan's auteur, both of them say to hell with actually depicting a realistic war movie.
The editing, cinematography and score all make the movie very intense but as a viewer I couldn't buy the fact that the characters are being fired on in incredibly tense situations and no one is yelling or cursing. I've never witnessed a silent street brawl and I imagine people being dive bombed and fired at during ww2 are going to be yelling more so than someone being punched. The first scene sets the tone and had me skeptical from the getgo.
Nolan says this isn't a war film but that won't stop the ridiculous comparisons to the other great war movies in the film pantheon. I feel this movie was Nolan indulging himself going the silent film route while all the while knowing the studio was going to market this film into relevancy. The high emotional point of the film when English civilians sail to Dunkirk to rescue her majesty's army fell flat since there was no emotional connection to any character in the movie.
A good war flick builds on a camaraderie amongst the characters, this is an important part of any military unit or high intense team sports; in professional sports teams with good chemistry are generally successful for the long term. Dunkirk is a story of escape and retreat but even with that premise some dialogue between the characters to build relationships and depth would've helped. "Platoon" effectively demonstrated how devastating a lack of camaraderie is to a military unit, summarizing the issues of the overall US campaign in the Vietnam war through the microcosm of an army platoon on an academy award winning level. For the sake of capricious artistry and box office success Nolan forebears any dialogue and expected foul language during dire situations making this film conveniently rated PG-13.
Despite my complaints I was entertained throughout "Dunkirk" and I appreciate the lack of irrelevant love story awkwardly interjected into so many current action movies. But the lack of dialogue between characters is a major flaw and it has to be noted. The critics will have you believe this a best picture nominee but the movie is not sound. Strong movie yes, but lacking a critical component which is the human element in war films that preceded it like "Saving Private Ryan" and " Das Boot".