The action unfurls along three timelines. Over a week, young soldier Tommy (Whitehead) finds himself alone on Dunkirk beach, trapped with 400,000 fellow soldiers as the Germans close in from behind and pick them off from the air. With hope fading, boats are being sunk all around - and under - him. Meanwhile in England, civilian Dawson (Rylance) and his sons (Glynn-Carney and Keoghan) spend a day traversing the Channel to rescue the trapped men with an armada of little privately owned boats. And in the sky, spitfire pilot Farrier (Hardy) spends one hour battling the Luftwaffe.

These three strands intersect and interact in typical Nolan style, catching us by surprise by crossing at various points in time to offer additional details and connections. And the effect is simply stunning, merging these three experiences to recount a much bigger story that makes a profound comment on warfare and the world in general, especially England's distinct brand of defiance in the face of crushing defeat. It's rousing and patriotic, but resolutely personal as well.

Characters are surprisingly vivid, with actors carefully underplaying their roles to reveal details that add to the tension and pull us in deeper. Standouts include Whitehead as every-guy Tommy, whose cohorts include hothead Alex (Styles) and watchful Gibson (Barnard); and Rylance as the steely Dawson, who picks up both a shell-shocked survivor (Murphy) and Farrier's downed sidekick (Lowden). And overseeing everything are the nervous commanders of the navy and army, played with plenty of texture by Branagh and D'Arcy.

It's no mean feat that Nolan juggles so many characters while giving each a kick of emotional resonance and a moving dramatic arc. But the depth feels earned for each man (at least one could have been cast as a woman), offering meaning to everything that happens. Each moment is shot and played for maximum impact. The pacing builds steadily to make it breathlessly riveting, and all three strands converge on a staggering sequence involving the frighteningly quick sinking of a ship, a slick of oil and a last-gasp aerial battle. This is the kind of movie that's impossible to shake afterwards. And its thematic ramifications are dark and powerful.

themes, language, violence

18.Jul.17