So for those who are new to the site, first of all, welcome, hope you’re enjoying yourselves, secondly, you may have missed Part 1 of this review. You can find it here: https://the51club.wordpress.com/2017/07/23/dunkirk-2017-review-part-1/
So my very first review on this page was for Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk (2017), however, I had some issues with the film. Not so much the film itself but the position I was seated in the cinema. Well, it only took me just under 9 months to finally see it again, but alas I managed to find a one-off IMAX screening (probably off the back of its 3 Oscar wins) and booked ahead of time to get better seats. So what did I think about the film the second time around? My opinion has changed greatly…
Other than being far too close to the screen the first time around my main problem with Dunkirk was that I didn’t know the history of the real-life event. So I wanted a typical war film, something like Saving Private Ryan (1998). I went into it expecting something very different so when I was served what I got I was a little disappointed. Not this time around. My Dad and even my Grandfather told me stories about Dunkirk and what they remember from the events that transpired. I read up on some articles about that era and even some other reviews of the film. Sitting there next to my Dad, which is really big as Dad very rarely goes to the cinemas, with good seats and the right frame of mind I was ready for round 2…. and I loved it.
I really can’t describe how differently I felt watching Dunkirk the second time around. I was getting goosebumps in scenes, feeling the emotion of the characters more greatly and even though I knew what was going to happen, I was still on the edge of my seat. It became more real for me. It became more of a rollercoaster experience. And it became one of my favourite films of 2017… just a shame I’ve already done my Top 10 list for the year already!
I don’t normally talk about the music in films a lot, which is wrong, music can make or break a film. But once again, Hans Zimmer absolutely nails the score in Dunkirk. He is arguably the greatest film composer in the world and when he and Nolan team up, it’s always amazing. After seeing him live in concert last year I have been appreciating his work even more and that was no different this time around. The other part of Nolan’s films that are always amazing is the cinematography. Hoyte van Hoytema does a tremendous job, just like he did the last time he worked with Nolan in Intersteller (2014). Using IMAX camera’s for the majority of the film and having them actually strapped to the planes while filming just made the experience that much more realistic and watching it on an IMAX screen just made the scope of it that much greater.
I criticised the lack of dialogue in the film last time and maybe not the best character development. I have to disagree with my previous comments as they are wrong. There’s probably not as much dialogue than your average feature film, but I was hanging on to every word spoken this time around and the character developments I was able to understand much better this time around. And yes ladies, Hary Styles was still really good in it.
Thankfully I can once again say that Christopher Nolan has not made a bad film in his entire career. All his films are great, most are brilliant and some are game changers. I think Dunkirk may even fall into the game changer category. I’ll be interested to watch it again one day on a normal television to see if it loses any of its appeal. If you like war films, Nolan films or true stories then this is a must see and as always remember “I know, we’re all gonna die. Everybody knows that. But I’m going to die today. Funny that… you know, to know. But the thing is, is that I’m still scared. Really scared. Nobody will mourn for me, no one will pray for my soul. Will you mourn for me? Will you say a prayer for me? Or is it too late… ah, I mean I’d say one for myself but I’ve never prayed in my life. Nobody ever taught me how… nobody ever taught me how…”
Overall Score: 46/51 = 92%
The 51 Club 