Movie of the Week: Dunkirk

Image Courtesy of Warner Bros. They’re the beating heart of film, especially when pitted against a shell shocked soldier (Cillian Murphy) who is determined to stop them from going back to Dunkirk. (For a filmmaker who isn’t always all that comfortable with heavy emoting, Dunkirk features some surprising, and often out-of-nowhere, shots straight to the solar plexus.) But it is noteworthy that this is Nolan’s shortest film, at 106 minutes, since his indie debut Following clocked in at 70 minutes (and $6,000 budget).

In May 1940, Germany advanced into France trapping 400,000 allied troops. The Sea: One Day”, following the small boats from England, and “3. I mean, there’s a moment in particular where you see our heroes kind of sitting there on the beach, not knowing what to do, and they watch a soldier just walk into the water and swim away.

“Dunkirk ” is not a typical war movie. “Dunkirk” stars Mark Rylance (“Bridge of Spies”) as a determined boatman, Tom Hardy (“Mad Max: Fury Road”) as an RAF pilot and Kenneth Branagh as a naval commander who helps spearhead the undertaking known as Operation Dynamo. Probably not. But for a lot of people, it’s the viewing experience they have for most movies, and in some cases, it’s the only one they have. It made me realize how awful it was for them, and the real struggle they went through.

A scene from the movie Dunkirk. It makes a difference in how you vote, in what you buy, or what you do with your life.

Much of the credit has to go to the music score and the sound effects produced for Dunkirk. Those soldiers were, for the most part, targeted for death by the German airmen flying overhead – intent on bombing them to extinction. Don’t be surprised to see Dunkirk clean up in the technical categories at next year’s Oscars; it is absolutely outstanding. The popular South Norwalk attraction has the state’s largest IMAX screen – it’s six stories tall – and still projects with 70mm film, which movie buffs know is the biggest, brightest, sharpest and clearest format. It has become steadily more expensive just for a ticket, let alone concessions, and over the last two decades, the number of theaters in America has dropped.

Cast members Jack Lowden, Aneurin Barnard and Barry Keoghan also hit the premiere and Rainbow Room party with producer Emma Thomas and studio chief Kevin Tsujihara, as well as Spike Lee, Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb.

Pictures recently hosted advance screenings for the Christopher Nolan-directed film “Dunkirk” which were met with favorable reviews. Dunkirk is brilliant, brilliant filmmaking and a throwback to the days of yore, when directors had a limited budget but unparalleled creativity and technique.

But the One Direction star upped the rating when he accidentally swore during filming. This is a proper big screen experience that demands a screen of suitable size to see it. Since this movie is full on action, we sadly don’t get to hear many of this more melodic pieces.