DUNKIRK ■ Relentless rollercoaster
It seems Christopher Nolan can do no wrong, no matter the material he’s tackling. From reimagining Batman (THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY), grounding a battle between feuding magicians (THE PRESTIGE), or visualising the depths of the dreaming subconscious (INCEPTION), Nolan has a knack for telling compelling stories.
Usually, these stories are driven by strong characterisation and believable character arcs. That’s not the case in DUNKIRK. That’s not to say that Nolan’s talented ensemble task doesn’t do a great job—they do—but DUNKIRK is closer to a silent movie, especially in comparison to Nolan’s earlier works. DUNKIRK tells the tale of the British Army’s first major defeat against the Nazis in France during World War II, and the subsequent need to retreat as many of those troops as possible back to England.
Nolan reunites with maestro Hans Zimmer to create a setting and soundscape that’s so intense that even soldiers standing in a line on a beach is somehow nerve-wracking. Nolan’s trimmed DUNKIRK to its bare essentials, ensuring that plot trumps storytelling, and it moves at a breakneck pace. Your skin will crawl, albeit in a good way, at the rising tension of every scene. The action set pieces are as horrific as they are beautifully shot, with Nolan’s love of practical effects ensuring that DUNKIRK will stand up to repeat viewings decades from now.
The biggest problem with DUNKIRK, though, is the convoluted inclusion of nonlinear storytelling. According to Nolan, his intent was to end each scene at its peak point of tension, then carry that tension forward to the next scene where it climaxes even further. Upon reflection, it’s an effective device in this respect, but it also proves to be a complication that initially (and, arguably, unnecessarily) alienates the audience.
Still, that minor frustration is likely only applicable to first-time viewings of DUNKIRK, and considering how awe-inspiring it is, it definitely deserves to be watched more than once. DUNKIRK is a relentless modern-day masterpiece that presents the greatest reinvigoration to traditional World War II storytelling since Clint Eastwood’s LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA. Go see it as soon as you can.
