Genre: Drama/ Action
Runtime: 119 minutes
Year: 2019
Starring: George MacKay, Dean-Charles Chapman, Mark Strong, Richard Madden, Andrew Scott, Colin Firth, Benedict Cumberbatch
Description: April 6th 1917. As a regiment assembles to wage war deep in enemy territory, two soldiers are assigned to race against time and deliver a message that will stop 1600 men from walking into a deadly trap.
Review: Anyone who watched that minute tracking shot in “Atonement”, on the beach of Dunkirk, watched it with jaw dropping amazement. And all those people will be in for a treat for “1917”. In this sweltering film, the camera follows two soldiers in one long shot, while being sent on a life-threatening mission behind enemy lines during World War I. A masterpiece by Sam Mendes, where the technique is fully at the service of the story. One of the most impressive war movies since “Saving Private Ryan”.
On a deceptively calm morning in the spring of 1917, the British soldiers Schofield and Blake are called to their sergeant for a risky mission. A few kilometers further, a British battalion thinks it can attack the retreating Germans. It appears to be an ambush. Communication between the two camps is no longer possible, so Schofield and Blake are sent to deliver the message in person. Within a couple of hours, otherwise it will be too late.
The two clamber over the barbed wire and start, on foot, a mission that seems to be doomed to fail. It’s awfully quiet in and around the German trenches, behind every rustle there’s a threat. Wonderful how the camera wanders around the two men, it glides past craters full of limbs, dives under water, then searches the sky for hostile planes. Whereas in other films the ‘long take’ can feel like a trick after a while, here it works brilliantly. The feeling of unrelenting threat is enormous, precisely because perspective is never changed. The camera is like the third soldier through whose eyes you watch this desperate mission. In reality, the camera is operated by master cinematographer Roger Deakins (“Blade Runner 2049”, “Sicario”, “Prisoners”), who always guarantees visual fireworks.
The fact that the film is somewhat schematic (obstacle-resting point-obstacle, etc.) is not a problem at all. For that, each scene on its own is too compelling or exciting. Lead actors Dean-Charles Chapman and George MacKay delicately give shape to their characters, flesh-and-blood soldiers, not the overly fearless types who appear so often in war films. The camaraderie between the two forms the leading beating heart of the story.
The clever thing about “1917” is that is combines the gripping art of storytelling with overwhelming experiential cinema. Christopher Nolan’s WOII epos “Dunkirk”, which stylistically shows some common ground, mainly fell into that second category. That film, too succeeded in conveying the raw reality of the battlefield, was brilliantly photographed, but lacked emotional depth. During the credits it can be read that “1917” is based on the war experiences of director Sam Mendes’ grandfather, who knows. Maybe it’s that what makes it so gripping.
I think I can say that “1917” is Sam Mendes’ best film so far.
Rating: 5 / 5
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