Dunkirk

A closer look at the story

Dunkirk recounts the evacuation of Dunkirk, one of the episodes that shaped the course of World War II. Allied troops from Britain, France, Belgium and Canada have been cut off and encircled by the German army, and they are now pinned down on the beaches and in the harbour of the French port. Behind them lies only the sea, and in front of them the advancing enemy. Exposed to attack and unable to defend themselves, the soldiers can only hope to be carried across the water to safety. The film stays with this desperate wait and with the effort to bring the encircled men home. This 107-minute war film from 2017, a British and American production, has Christopher Nolan as both its writer and director. Fionn Whitehead plays Tommy, Tom Hardy plays Farrier, Mark Rylance is Mr. Dawson and Kenneth Branagh is Commander Bolton, while Cillian Murphy appears as a shivering soldier.