DUNKIRK : Monday 24th July 2017.

I saw 'DUNKIRK' in its 70mm format in one of only 159 cinemas worldwide showcasing this film in this way, and I'd have to say, that this is the only way to see this film! Back in the early '90's Christopher Nolan and his future wife, movie Producer and film collaborator Emma Thomas, were sailing across the English Channel to Dunkirk, when the young Writer and Director hit upon an idea for a film, about the evacuation of British armed forces from the war torn beaches of Dunkirk in mid-1940. He committed his idea to a 76 page Screenplay, and then put the whole idea on hold until such time as he had gained sufficient experience in making big epic blockbusting action film fare - the like of which he has more than proven he can do over the subsequent years. However, rather than making a film about the war time politics involving Churchill and his Generals; or showing the Germans on the beach head taking out allied forces with their strategically located gun placements; or paint this as a victory; or bring in Uncle Sam to save the day, he chose to make a film with an all English cast and from three perspectives - the air (involving Spitfire and Luftwaffe dog fights), the land (on the beaches of Dunkirk), and the sea (the evacuation of 400,000 troops by the Navy and any able bodied sea man who could steer a dinghy across the Channel to aid the rescue attempt).

And so armed with an ensemble cast of fine and lesser known English acting talent, Nolan has created a WWII action drama film where the dialogue is thin on the ground and there is no character backstory, instead allowing the suspense to come through the details and the authentic fact based story contained within the scenes. Nolan also made extensive use of practical effects - employing some six thousand extras, amassing a flotilla of boats that had participated in the real Dunkirk evacuation, and using genuine era-appropriate planes for aerial sequences. The film centres around the evacuation of British, French, Belgian and Canadian troops who are pinned down by German forces on the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, and their evacuation between 26th May and 4th June 1940 in what was known as 'Operation Dynamo'. The film Premiered in London on 13th July and was released worldwide last week, having cost US$100M to make it has so far grossed US$122M and has met largely with widespread acclaim.

The film is a triptych, with each separate clearly defined story overlapping through their engagement with the enemy while recounting the heroics, the ever present danger, the chaos and the gritty determination of everyday airmen, sea men, soldiers on the ground and the British general public in their concerted rescue attempts as they come under a constant barrage of attack by land, sea and air from the German forces. Told in a non-linear narrative style covering three different time periods - one on land covering a week and staged at one of two Moles protecting the outer harbour at Dunkirk from which ships were able to dock to evacuate the troops; one from the sea covering one day as the Royal Navy commandeer private boats to aid the rescue attempt across the English Channel; and one from the air covering one hour as a small squadron of three Spitfires fly across the Channel to provide air support to the men on the ground in Dunkirk. As the film opens up, an introductory text tells us that in 1940, after the invasion of France by Nazi Germany, thousands of Allied soldiers retreated to the French seaside town of Dunkirk. As the surrounding British perimeter shrinks, the soldiers await evacuation, a seemingly hopeless situation.

And so to the Mole, on land, where we meet young British Private Tommy (Fionn Whitehaed) who after a close encounter with German snipers survives and makes it behind Allied lines to the relative safety of Dunkirk beach and the amassed hordes of British and allied troops eagerly anticipating their imminent evacuation. There he meets Gibson (Aneurin Bernard) and the two stretcher an injured soldier across the beach to a waiting ship evacuating the wounded. The two lads are denied entry to the outgoing ship, but the injured man is carried aboard. Tommy and Gibson stow themselves away under the infrastructure of the Mole hoping to sneak abroad the next ship. German attack planes descend on the Mole, sinking the outgoing ship as it is about to leave the dock. In the chaos, the boys are thrown into the sea and save young Alex (Harry Styles) from being crushed as the ship sinks. They get on another boat later that night, but that is torpedoed by a German U-Boat and this time Gibson saves Tommy and Alex. The next day the three lads join a small group of Scottish soldiers who have spied a grounded fishing trawler further up the beach outside of the Allied perimeter. Hiding inside the vessel waiting for the tide to rise to refloat the boat, they are set upon by German soldiers who use the trawler for target practice shooting many holes in the boats hull, to the extent that when the boat does finally rise it lets in so much water that the men have to abandon it soon afterwards. As the vessel sinks, Gibson becomes entangled in some rigging and drowns. Alex and Tommy swim for a nearby minesweeper, but it is bombed and sinks. They are eventually picked up by Mr. Dawson's (Mark Rylance) boat in the vicinity of the sunken minesweeper that has been leaking oil heavily into the sea. They narrowly escape being engulfed in flames as a German plane is shot down and crashes into the sea in a ball of flame so igniting the oil slick. Mr. Dawson picks up a boat load of oil caked survivors and heads back for the white cliffs of England, and home.

Meanwhile on the Mole, Commander Bolton (Kenneth Branagh) has taken charge of the proceedings as the pier-master to coordinate the rescue and evacuation efforts. Together with Colonel Winnant (James D'Arcy) they discuss Churchill's rejection of Germany's offer for Britain to surrender and his commitment to see to it that 30,000 servicemen are evacuated, and that smaller civilian vessels had been ordered to aid the evacuation attempt to save the larger fleet for the defence of Britain. As the last vestiges of the British soldiers had been evacuated by a flotilla of smaller English boats of every size and description, so Winnant departs expecting Bolton to go with him. But stoically, Bolton stays behind stating that 300,000 British troops had been evacuated, and he would see to it that the French were next to be rescued.

To the sea, and Mr. Dawson does his duty to King and country without hesitation and sets of his motor cruiser (the 'Moonstone') with his son Peter (Tom Glynn-Carney) and teenage deck hand George (Barry Keoghan). Soon after departing into the English Channel they spot three Spitfire planes over head. The vessel shortly afterwards comes across a semi-sunken ship with a lone survivor sitting on the hull of the upturned vessel. They rescue him and welcome the bitterly cold soldier aboard (Cillian Murphy) who is clearly shell shocked. The soldier becomes very agitated when he learns that Dawson is heading to Dunkirk and not to England and demands that the boat be turned around immediately, saying that he cannot go back there for fear of certain death. A scuffle ensues, George is knocked below deck injuring himself badly and the soldier is ordered to sleep it off below deck. Dawson continues heading toward France. En route they witness a Spitfire ditch in the sea, and going to its rescue they haul out RAF Pilot Collins (Jack Lowden) who was about to drown in the cockpit of his rapidly sinking Spitfire. They then come across a stricken minesweeper under attack by a German bomber, and manoeuvre the vessel to take on soldiers fleeing the listing ship and spilling oil heavily into the sea - among them Tommy and Alex.

In the air, RAF Pilot Farrier (Tom Hardy) and two others - Collins and their Squadron Leader fly low over the English Channel to provide air support to the troops on the ground in Dunkirk. Along the way they encounter a Luftwaffe plane which shoots down the Squadron Leader. Farrier and Collins continue towards France monitoring their dwindling fuel supply regularly. In another mid-air skirmish the pair take out another German plane, but Collins has sustained damage to his Spitfire and is forced to ditch at sea. Farrier continues on regardless unaware of what the outcome was for his flying mate. Getting closer to France Farrier must switch to reserve fuel now. He then witnesses the bombing of the minesweeper and the sinking of the trawler on which Tommy and Alex managed to swim free. Reaching Dunkirk he takes out the German bomber aircraft that was hampering the evacuation attempts, so saving ships and lives in the process. He runs out of fuel and glides along the beach to the rapturous applause of the soldiers below, seeking a landing spot on the sand. He brings his aircraft down gently on the sand but outside of the Allied perimeter. He torches his plane and as it erupts in a ball of flame with him looking on, so he is taken prisoner by German soldiers.

'Dunkirk' adds another dimension to the history of war films in cinema just as 'Saving Private Ryan' did in 1998. Without getting bogged down in the political agenda of the WWII era, or the labouring back story of the principle cast, or the rights and wrongs as seen by either side, here Christopher Nolan has crafted a war film that is very much of a moment in time from the perspective not of heroes, but of everyday men responding to extraordinary circumstances in differing situations. We have young foot soldiers doing what they can to survive - run, hide, duck and weave; we have an ageing father doing his bit for his country to help bring his boys back home in their hour of need; we have a fighter pilot with a do or die attitude; and we have a naval commander who simply gets the job done with the minimal amount of fuss and then hangs back to do it all over again. Knowing the truth behind the Dunkirk evacuation makes this all the more a grounded story, backed up by strong performances, a stirring score by Hans Zimmer, and masterful Direction and Cinematography courtesy of Hoyte van Hoytema (who also worked with Nolan on 'Interstellar'). If I had any criticism it would be that the characters are emotionally bereft. They are all stoic, stiff upper lip, never say die middle class Englishmen with their focus squarely on the job at hand, and a such it's a little tough investing in them, and, in addition what of the role of women here - women in this film are banished to handing out cups of tea and jam sandwiches to evacuating troops below decks, but history tells us that they had more important roles to play! All that said, the film is rousing, stirring, uniquely realised, and totally immersive, and a must see on the biggest screen you can possibly find, and ideally in 70mm.

-Steve, at Odeon Online-