Dunkirk (2004)

A dramatized documentary about the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk in May 1940.

Director:

Alex Holmes

Writers:

Alex Holmes, Neil McKay

Stars:

Timothy Dalton, Simon Russell Beale, Clive Brunt

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Timothy Dalton	...	Narrator (voice)
Simon Russell Beale	...	Winston Churchill
Clive Brunt	...	Pte Alf Tombs
Phil Cornwell	...	Harry Noakes
Benedict Cumberbatch	...	Lt Jimmy Langley
Ricci Harnett	...	Guardsman Desmond Thorogood
Nicholas Jones	...	Maj Angus McCorquodale
Michael Legge	...	LCpl Wilf Saunders
James Loye	...	Sub Lt David Mellis RN
Kevin McNally	...	Maj Gen Harold Alexander (as Kevin R. McNally)
Roland Manookian	...	Frankie Osborne
Alex Noodle	...	Lukie Osborne
Adrian Rawlins	...	Capt Bill Tennant RN
Rick Warden	...	Maj Philip Newman RAMC
Ben Abell	...	Cpl Gill

Storyline

A dramatized documentary about the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk in May 1940.

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Plot Keywords:

dunkirk | evacuation | escape | dunkirk france | operation dynamo | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Drama | History | War

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 February 2004 (UK)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

180 min (3 parts)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Clement Attlee is played by his real-life grandson, Richard Attlee.

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Goofs

Although a major-general at the time, Alexander wears full general's rank insignia.

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Connections

Featured in History Buffs: Dunkirk (2018)

User Reviews

"A miracle of deliverance - "

• was what Churchill called the evacuation from Dunkirk, and as narrator Tim Dalton informs us, the quarter of a million British troops snatched from Nazi claws in June 1940 were to be the core of the British Army throughout the war.

Churchill reminded his countrymen "not to assign to Dunkirk the attributes of victory," but still - it proved to be event that would bolster England for the war in general and the Battle of Britain - only a month away - in particular. The British pluck in the face of an enemy that had by then defeated all of Europe helped bring in the Americans without which the war would undoubtedly be lost.

We cannot be reminded often enough what might have happened, and what nearly did happen in 1940. As the film shows with admirable accuracy, Churchill was pretty much alone in his decision not to give in to appeasement policy and make bargains with the Germans, for which determination his fellow politicians, Chamberlain and his ilk, awarded him with the moniker 'warmonger'.

We don't seem to have many Churchills these days, among the heaps of Chamberlains that persist in telling us that 'war is not the answer.' Sometimes it helps to have the question repeated. As in this film. Back in 1940, the question was how to respond to German imperialism, Nazi atrocities and disregard for Geneva Conventions. It was a defense of the British values that Churchill so eloquently voiced.

BTW, I hardly recognized Simon Russell Beale as Sir Winston. Excellent bit of make-up, that.