DUNKIRK-review. It is one of the greatest war films ever made
Richard Fitzwilliams
Royal commentator, film critic, public relations consultant, lecturer. Has given over 1300 television interviews, 200 for CNN. Columnist Express online, Mail online.
DUNKIRK: THE EPIC OF THE YEAR. Richard Fitzwilliams, film critic, is available on 07939 602 749 (www.richardfitzwilliams.com) @RFitzwilliams
This pivotal event in 1940 during World War II is the subject of Christopher Nolan's eagerly awaited blockbuster. Nolan, whose movies from The Dark Knight, Inception and Interstellar, have shown inventiveness on the large screen, tries a new genre here and also portrays one of the most defining events in British history.
It succeeds superbly, depicting events on land, sea and air with visceral realism in an episode which helped shape the British character and much influenced its history. A fine cast, superb editing and amazing photography make this one of the greatest war films ever made.
The mesmerising aerial sequences could be out of a Paul Nash Painting. The maritime scenes are ferociously apocalyptic and the sequences on the beaches are superb, although we know the ending, the tension is so skillfully maintained.
Nolan, like Quentin Tarantino, is using the IMAX screen, 70 mm and 35mm where possible to enhance the wide screen experience in an age where movies are far too often seen online or streamed. This is how it should be seen.
SAVING PRIVATE RYAN changed the war film forever with its unforgettably visceral portrayal of the carnage on Omaha Beach. Films such as THE HURT LOCKER, THE BATTLE OF IWO JIMA and HACKSAW RIDGE have featured hard hitting and realistic action sequences as all war films have since.
The Dunkirk spirit became a soubriquet to describe the stiff upper lip which became synonymous with Britain as it survived against the odds and the tide turned. The 1958 movie Dunkirk was popular but inadequate. This is a masterpiece.