REVIEWS NO-ONE ASKED FOR
by Ashton Brown
DUNKIRK
written & directed by CHRISTOPHER NOLAN
AT WAR WITH ONESELF
Christopher Nolan has, over the past decade or so, solidified his role as one of our generations greatest mainstream directors combining superb camera work, spectacular set pieces, unique stories and the ability to extract the best performance from his actors.
I have never been a fan of war films. I find they ooze of patriotism, paint one sided stories of history and are usually used to justify war in reality. I find them overly long, overly sympathetic to the "heroes" and overly similar. It is a genre of films I have little interest in. However I am a massive Nolan fanboy and I know that the sheer visual scale of his films is best enjoyed at the cinema rather than at home so I quickly got myself along to the cinema to see Dunkirk.
Thematically, Dunkirk doesn't offer anything that hasn't been offered in every other war film. The triumph and resilience of the human spirit. The damage war does to soldiers and civilians alike. The magnitude of the loss. The desensitising nature of violence and death. No new ideas or themes are presented in Dunkirk. The narrative isn't overly complex or insightful although the exposition of the narrative is, in true Nolan fashion, unique and refreshing and continues to show us how much the director enjoys playing with non-linear storytelling. The film soars visually as Nolan manages to create both a sense of claustrophobia and a sense of terrifying hugeness to the whole thing through his genius camera work. It is very much a visual triumph.
I would like to say at this point that I don't think Dunkirk is a masterpiece nor do I think it is the directors best work. Aspects of the film are breathtakingly sensational and are a hint at what could have been a masterpiece if all aspects of the film were equally strong. However as far as the story itself goes - there is little. The characters are grim and devoid of any real individuality and whilst this may serve to demonstrate the reality of war and the way human life very quickly becomes nothing more than statistics, it made it hard for me to connect with anyone in the film and ultimately this separation stopped me from feeling anything overly emotional in regards to what I was witnessing. So whilst I was able to marvel at the sheer beauty of what I was looking at - the lack of emotional connection between the characters and the audience left me feeling more disengaged than I would have liked to.
As far as pacing goes - my heart did race for the majority of the film. I did feel on edge and it was filled with adrenaline inducing tension. This is all because the true genius of Dunkirk is in it's soundtrack. Since dialogue is extremely sparse - Nolan relies on Hans Zimmer to drive the story musically. Zimmer is the true genius behind Dunkirk and if any aspect of the film earns the term 'masterpiece' it is certainly the composition of the soundtrack. From the second the film starts Zimmer's (arguably best work) takes the audience on a journey of nerves. The pace is entirely controlled by the soundtrack and for me, this is what makes Dunkirk stand out from just being one of many competent films in the genre.
Overall, Dunkirk is very good. Visually, it is exceptional and musically it is a masterpiece. However the lack of character and plainness of the narrative (structure aside) leaves the film on the edge of being something much, much better and whilst this may serve the overall message, it left this movie goer feeling three quarters full and not completely satisfied.
Must see at the cinema.
4 out of 5
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