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17 reviews in total

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26 out of 28 people found the following review useful:
What a WWII movie should be, 20 December 2002

Author: Jerry Baustian from San Diego, CA

A simple film, two stories, soldiers and civilians who did what needed to be done. None of the romance of "Mrs Minnever," but moving nonetheless.

I appreciated this film all the more for having seen "Pearl Harbor" a few months ago. I gave "Dunkirk" 8/10, maybe a little generous, because of the attention to detail and accuracy. The acting was better than adequate, and it was wonderful to see a youngish Bernard Lee. He was 49 when this film was released in 1958 -- there is a gap in his filmography from 41 to 45, so he probably served in the war... as did many of the other actors.

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24 out of 25 people found the following review useful:
A Nation Mobilized, 13 March 2007

Author: bkoganbing from Buffalo, New York

My favorite story of heroism in the 20th century happens to be the evacuation of the bulk of the British army from the beaches at Dunkirk. There was the United Kingdom which if they had not been rescued probably would have had to sue for peace with Nazi Germany despite Mr. Churchill's intentions to fight. The United Kingdom would have had nothing to fight with and World War II would have been over on the western front.

The Dunkirk story was touched on briefly in the American cinema in William Wyler's Mrs. Miniver. Walter Pidgeon who owned a small craft was asked to meet some friends at a local pub. Turns out they wanted him and his boat to cross the English channel and evacuate troops. It's one of the great scenes from that film boats feeding in from every tributary of Thames and the flotilla sailing out to sea. But it's only part of Mrs. Miniver.

The story is told from the perspective of the high command, but also from the ordinary tommy and from the civilians who helped. John Mills is a corporal who leads his small squad out of certain capture from the Germans. Richard Attenborough is a small craft owner like Walter Pidgeon who is a timid and frightened man, but summons up enough courage to help his country out in its darkest hour. Bernard Lee is a reporter who goes along with Attenborough to cover the story. All three meet on the beach at Dunkirk and go to the fates that await them and their country.

My favorite in the film is Attenborough, he plays his role with real conviction, representing as it were, the courage and determination of a people united to repel an evil.

Make no mistake about it, with the Royal Navy up over its head in other commitments, those people like Richard Attenborough in saving John Mills and others like him saved civilization itself. In many ways civilization owes them more than even the men of the RAF because they weren't in the armed forces, but civilians fighting for their homes and families as we did not see the like before or since.

Dunkirk is one of the best war films ever to come from the United Kingdom and a worthy tribute to the small boat owners who saved their army and their nation.

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18 out of 19 people found the following review useful:
One of the best war movies I have ever seen., 7 February 2007

Author: The_Ringo_Kid from United States

Dunkirk is one of the best war movies I have ever seen. It was nice to see Sir John Mills in one of his best if not-THE best roles he ever was in. The makers of this fine film did a most excellent job in portraying as accurately as possible; the terrible events that made up Dunkirk.

The cast was excellent and I am of the opinion that Leonard Maltin (a film critic) really does not know what he is talking about--especially when it comes to this fantastic classic movie. The cast was also superb.

This movie centers around the events that made up Dunkirk and was very accurately portrayed. It was because of this film that one learns that Mr. Lightholler (of Titanic fame) risked his own neck and boat in order to make that trip across the English Channel and to help out in the evacuation of British and French Soldiers; off Dunkirk Beach.

Somebody PLEASE release this film on DVD. I have not had the pleasure of seeing this film in many years and would sure love to see it again.

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15 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
"They chose guns, we chose butter", 25 September 2006

Author: Matt (MH5adam70) from London

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

I ignore Empire's slating of this movie as I write this. Dunkirk remains one of the greatest war movies that there is, yet it is not in effect a war movie. Although detailing the collapse of France and the greatest naval evacuation, it is an anti-war movie in regards of Bernard Mills' character and his death towards the end. For a film made towards, indeed at the end of Ealing's reign it has a staggering cast. Notably there is Sir John Mills (a legend of the highest order) playing one of his many 'in uniform' roles. No one role is made to jump up, all are quietly understated. The use of b&w footage from 1940 intermixes brilliantly, such as the Stuka attack on the woodland outpost bombed into submission. Lionel Jeffries is in the medic scene where they draw lots, again a brilliant scene that is laden with emotion. Sir Malcolm Arnold's score for this film (re-used for Heroes of Telemark) is absolutely first rate. The theme when used to show the little boats leaving London provokes a shiver to run down my spine. Sir Malcolm died this weekend gone and will be sorely missed.

This film is the rarest of war films like Dambusters, no love theme, and stoically brilliant.

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15 out of 18 people found the following review useful:
Abrupt Ending, 11 August 2003
Author: (w2amarketing@yahoo.com) from Pennsylvania

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Leonard Maltin said that DUNKIRK relied too heavily on newsreel footage. In fact, the only newsreels appear early in the film as means of introduction. It's possible (probable) that Leslie Norman edited live-action snippets from newsreels into the movie, but, if so, there's very little of this and it fits with the rest of the action. Thus, an unfair criticism.

DUNKIRK is a good film, and the producers were successful in making the movie suitably suspenseful, even though most people knows how it ended up historically. By all accounts, it is historically accurate. My criticism is one of pace -- DUNKIRK seems to drag for its first 100 minutes or so, with a particularly long span of film devoted to the meanderings of Cpl. Bins' squad as they beat the Belgian bushes in confusion. In fact, the focus on Bins & Co. is almost entirely uninterrupted by other action in other settings, making it seem even longer.

The actual evacuation, then, is crammed into the final 30 minutes, and, in fact, very little of it is actually depicted. Since this was the main point of the story, it seems odd that the producers would devote 75% of the film to what is essentially introduction and very little to the main action. As an example (no, this is not a spoiler) -- the Heron's motor quits in the middle of the channel, and the boat begins drifting towards Nazi-held Calais. Yet, within seconds -- IN THE SAME SCENE -- a Royal Navy destroyer appears out of nowhere to rescue them. At least one or two cuts to other action would have enhanced the impact of the rescue (which, BTW, is not actually shown, either).

Nonetheless, an above-average and accurate WWII film that's worth seeing at least once.

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11 out of 12 people found the following review useful:
Good account of the Dunkirk evacuation, 4 June 2007

Author: jonesus from London, England

This film is worth seeing as a good account of the Dunkirk evacuation. John Mills gives a fine performance. I agree with a previous comment that more time could have been devoted to the actual evacuation. However the time devoted to the group of UK soldiers moving through France helps to show conditions for the French people. Someone asked about where the Lock was. The Lock on the Thames where the small boatyard scenes were filmed is Teddington Lock. the suspension footbridge is still there as is the weir. Toughs Boatyard which is referred to in the film was on the River Thames at Teddington opposite the lock, it is now I believe demolished and been replaced by riverside apartments. Other scenes were filmed by the River Thames at Twickenham, along the embankment by Twickenham's Eel Pie Island. This still looks pretty much the same if you go there now.(Except for all the parked cars!

John

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12 out of 17 people found the following review useful:
Concise account of the real thing., 22 January 1999

Author: Stephen Stratford (stephen@sp-stratford.demon.co.uk)

This presents a concise account of the Dunkirk operation. It avoids the "stuff upper lip" mentality that was present in a great deal of British War films of this time (with some exceptions). The film presents two separate stories around the Dunkirk operation: the lost soldiers (led by the NCO John Mills) and the cynical civilian reporter (Bernard Lee). They finally meet up on the beach at Dunkirk. A very well directed Ealing Film.

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7 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
Has Aged Surprisingly Well, 14 September 2008

Author: screenman from United Kingdom

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

'Dunkirk' was the event that really cemented WW2 in British minds. Up to that point it had been more a newsworthy disturbance in a foreign land, following on the much maligned 'phony' war.

For the first time, those at home - at least in the home counties - could see for themselves the face of defeat in legions of haggard and bandaged returnees.

This movie takes us through events in a familiar well-paced documentary-like way that makes old British war movies so watchable. There are few excessive heroics, just a gradual realisation that greater effort is needed and a reconciliation to it.

Individuals are about to have their pleasure craft commandeered. Even in the 1940's, to own your own boat for pleasure was a very middle-class activity, and so we see this 'Dad's Navy' confused and reluctant at first, but eventually volunteering themselves along with their boats. They still have little idea what awaits them.

In France, things are falling apart fast. The collapsing British forces are shown in microcosm by a company of squaddies led by working-class 'corporal' John Mills, complete with phony cockney accent. Constantly harassed by the encroaching German army, they manage to stay one step ahead and reach Dunkirk.

Only soldiers can be evacuated. The supplies and substance of an army must be abandoned, destroying as much as possible rather than allowing it to fall into enemy hands.

Small-ship civilians get trapped ashore and share in the bombardment with soldiers. Some are killed. There's a lot of men and a lot of equipment shown at times. It's clear that the army were involved in the movie's making. Cabin cruisers explode, loaded ships are bombed. Although today, the bombs falling on the dunes bear more similarity to thunder flashes, for its time, the overall effect is creditable. There are believable performances all round from a cast of reliable, regular stalwarts. And, necessary for every movie; we are made to care about them.

The retreat from Dunkirk was the first of several Great British reversals that were needed before the nation took its plight seriously enough to galvanise itself into a professional war-effort. This movie doesn't moralise or sentimentalise much. Dunkirk was chaos that was saved from disaster by just a little bit of order and a great deal of courage. Not to mention luck.

Well worth a watch even today. It may be a drama but it tells you as much as a reference book.

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7 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
Underrated true life war film, 22 July 2007

Author: AKA_Paul_Murphy from Scotland

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

There are 3 types of World War 2 films, the Hollywood blockbuster, the Noel Coward stiff upper lip variety and films like Dunkirk.

Films like this one, Canterbury tales, Millions like us and Went the day well did not deal in heroics but with the sacrifices and ordeals of ordinary people whose lives where touched by war. It was made the whole lot more honest as most of the films were made during the war and with later films by people who had served in the war.

There has been criticism that that the film was too slow and took to long to get to the evacuation where the action took place. I have to disagree.

Although I am no expert on WW2 history, I have enough knowledge to know that the British response to the German aggression was in a shambles and this was portrayed throughout the film.

I won't give anything anyway but I recommend that this film is well worth watching to get a sense of time and emotion on how these events unfolded.

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8 out of 11 people found the following review useful:
blood,toil,tears and sweat, 29 May 2006

Author: (lackname-1) from United States

The evacuation from Dunkirk was every bit as important as the Battle of Britain. If the British would have lost those 350,000 troops on the beaches they would almost certainly have lost the war. Those men couldn't be replaced at least not easily. A defeat like that would have ended everything. There would have been extreme pressure to make a deal with Hitler and end the war. Thankfully they didn't give up and stuck to the job and thankfully Hitler very stupidly pulled his panzer forces up short.

This movie has good acting by a good cast, but I've always felt it could have been done better. Dunkirk is a subject that should be revisited on the big screen.

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