DUNKIRK

"You can almost see it...Home."

Christopher Nolan has a bit of a reputation of making some of the best films of our time. The Dark Knight, Inception, Interstellar to name a few. Of course, when news broke a couple of years ago that his next film would be set during World War 2, it's safe to say a lot of people were pleased. I was one of them. And now his next big film is here: Dunkirk.

Dunkirk tells the story of, well, Dunkirk. Britain's army has been pushed back to the northern beaches of France as they await transport home. Quickly running out of time, a call is sent out to civilian boats back home to aid in the rescue operations. Unlike most films, Dunkirk tells it's story in a different way than most films do, and while it's admittedly jarring to begin with, it, for the story being told, works wonders. The story isn't given to us in chronological order, and the audience isn't given a 'bird's eye view' of the whole event. Instead, Dunkirk tells it's story from different perspectives, and because of this, we see events that all tie in together unfold from different angles. Yes, this means there's a lot of jumping back and forth, but it's a fresh take and it means a deeper story can unfold in the process. Even more than that, Nolan uses this technique to keep the audience guessing, as often the whole picture isn't shown to the audience straight away.

Along with a strong story that's not shown to us in cinema's most conventional method, Dunkirk also brings an incredibly immersive soundtrack, thanks to the legendary Hans Zimmer. Once again, Zimmer brings another masterful soundtrack to a Nolan film, and it shows what a great mix the director and composer can be. Zimmer's soundtrack is tense, loud, and is used to perfection throughout the film. Most films like to have a fair mix between the volume of soundtrack and sound effects, but Dunkirk prioritises the soundtrack, and rightly so. It keeps the film focuses on the chaos of the situation at hand, and the constant ticking clock keeps the viewer on edge from start to finish. But don't worry, Zimmer does bring some beautiful moments to his soundtrack as well. Skip to around four minutes, and you'll see...

The film also delivers a strong cast, with returning Nolan-favourites such as Tom Hardy and Cillian Murphy, who both give great performances. While the rest of the cast is made up from nearly all new faces, it's difficult to assign best performance. The genius of Dunkirk's cast is that they're all quietly brilliant, and in that way, they all shine. There's no un-necessary over-acting or anything like that. The cast fit their roles almost perfectly simply because this is a story driven film, with the characters responding to the story at hand. That being said, Tom Hardy's role as Spitfire Pilot Farrier is probably the one to watch...

After all, he does get some of the film's best moments...

So then, a strong story, a tense and immersive soundtrack, a quietly brilliant cast, and, oh yes, some brilliant film making in general. But to be fair, when hasn't Nolan delivered that in one of his films? The power of Dunkirk's visuals is that they don't shy away from the fact that: a) War is chaos, and: b) Dunkirk was not a small affair. I'll elaborate on that. Yes, some of the scenes are chaotic and at times it’s difficult to see what's going on, but that part of the genius immersion that Nolan gives Dunkirk. In those moments that chaos, you are put in the same situation as the soldiers, and it gives the film a great amount of substance that it would other-wise lose.

On to the matter of the size of Dunkirk. It's a well-known fact that Nolan is not a fan of using CGI in his films when he doesn't need too. If you look back at, say, The Dark Knight, most of the action scenes used practical effects, and they look so much better for it. Now we come out Dunkirk, a film featuring hundreds of soldiers stranded on beaches and naval destroyers filling the water. Now, most film makers would just used CGI in both instances. Nolan, well, Nolan doesn't. Those Destroyers you see in the water, and those soldiers filling the beaches, they're not CGI.

The mix of great cinematography and real extras does the story of spectacle of Dunkirk justice.

All in all, Dunkirk is a triumph for Nolan, and in fact everyone involved. Nolan's way of film-making continues to show audiences why it's so loved by fans and Zimmer delivers a hugely powerful soundtrack to accompany it, keeping the film tense from start to finish. The cast's quiet yet superb performances shine as well, and help to make even the smallest moments more powerful for the big screen. While the method of story-telling may be jarring to begin with, it's pay off in the end and over-all freshness is just another factor behind Dunkirk's genius. Whatever Nolan directs next, I for one will be looking forward to it...