Dunkirk - Review thread

http://www.slantmagazine.com/film/review/dunkirk

1.5 / 4

That Nolan wrenches grace notes out of such fleeting bits of horror is a testament to his intermittent skills as an image-maker. As with his recent spate of blockbusters, however, his fussy ambition ultimately results in aesthetic and thematic sloppiness.
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Vault Dweller 111 said:
Can't believe that average rating is holding steady.

Now my main goal is to de-hype myself a bit before Thursday so my expectations aren't impossibly high.
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Probably the smartest thing to do. It doesn't have the scope and it's not the knockout punch Private Ryan was back then but it's a damn fine piece of filmmaking with a neat idea at its center (
soldiers being at war not with enemy soldiers but with time itself
).
 
I hate reviews like that where you can picture the reviewer struggling to make up bullshit reasons to slap a negative score to a movie that's almost getting universally praised.
Like you can imagine him being Skinner from the Simpsons. Am I out of touch? No it's the kids who are wrong.
 
Lima said:
I hate reviews like that where you can picture the reviewer struggling to make up bullshit reasons to slap a negative score to a movie that's almost getting universally praised.
Like you can imagine him being Skinner from the Simpsons. Am I out of touch? No it's the kids who are wrong.
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The criticism there don't sound like bullshit reasons. He mainly touches on the editing and narrative crosscutting and how he felt they hindered the storytelling and clarity of scenes
 
Bobby Roberts said:
As much as I don't like what these guys have become over time, I can't knock that they are getting people to watch movies they might not otherwise watch, even if its for what seems like, on the surface, a counterproductive reason. People might not give these films a real chance if they're heading into the theater with that mindset, but there's still the possibility something new might surprise a viewer or two, and that's overall a good thing.
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I get what you are saying, but I really don't know if Dunkirk is a good example of this. Or pretty much most of the stuff RLM reviews in Half in the Bag. This thread has 15 pages, geeks geek over Nolan. Some of their recent reviews are Wonder Woman, The Mummy, Spiderman, Baby Driver and Power Rangers. It's not like they are getting people to see foreign cinema and dramas.
 
Budi said:
I get what you are saying, but I really don't know if Dunkirk is a good example of this.
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Hey, that dude was saying he was only gonna see it for the review. That's one more movie that guy otherwise wouldn't have seen.

It doesn't have to be Merchant Ivory for it to count. Getting people to see movies they otherwise might not is part of what a critic should be going for. If they're doing that, even for wide-release stuff, that's a net positive, however small that net might be.

It's faint praise, definitely, but it's also me at the least giving them credit for something other than cheap cynicism and mind-numbing gifs.
 
Bobby Roberts said:
Hey, that dude was saying he was only gonna see it for the review. That's one more movie that guy otherwise wouldn't have seen.

It doesn't have to be Merchant Ivory for it to count. Getting people to see movies they otherwise might not is part of what a critic should be going for. If they're doing that, even for wide-release stuff, that's a net positive, however small that net might be.

It's faint praise, definitely, but it's also me at the least giving them credit for something other than cheap cynicism and mind-numbing gifs.
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Well, can't argue against this.
 
Down to 95% on the tomato score. Time to band together and drive this under 90%. This is a boring, overplayed setting. DM can't win again.

Is Nolan officially the modern day Spielberg?
 
I saw it at a screening last night and wasn't a fan. I thought it was the fact that I was in the first row, but I didn't understand what people were saying half the time. It felt extremely disjointed with the multiple perspectives across different points of time zooming in and out of focus. The scenes were tense at times, and the last act was significantly better than the first two - but I was severely disappointed at the product as a whole. I'll give it a go when it's on bluray. Maybe not being in the first row will add to my enjoyment?
 
harSon said:
I saw it at a screening last night and wasn't a fan. I thought it was the fact that I was in the first row, but I didn't understand what people were saying half the time. It felt extremely disjointed with the multiple perspectives across different points of time zooming in and out of focus. The scenes were tense at times, and the last act was significantly better than the first two - but I was severely disappointed at the product as a whole. I'll give it a go when it's on bluray. Maybe not being in the first row will add to my enjoyment?
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Definitely a Nolan movie.
 
Some of these reviewers make me question what's happening here... like how on Earth is it getting all these ridiculous scores... and then someone like Kevin Carr on Fat Guys gives it a lower rating than Zoolander 2 and The Day After Tomorrow...

Corpsepyre said:
I imagine Jake Cole is going to get his ass whipped on social media soon.
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I hope not, but I can't even begin to wrap my head around how someone thinks XXX: Return of Xander Cage is better than Logan and Dunkirk... then again take a look at their review of Moonlight.
 
SCULLIBUNDO said:
Definitely a Nolan movie.
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I never fully got this complaint. Like my first language isn't even English and I can understand and hear everything just fine in every single one of his movies (okay Interstellar was a little hard but that's because Matthew McConaughey was being McConaughey)
 
Lima said:
I never fully got this complaint. Like my first language isn't even English and I can understand and hear everything just fine in every single one of his movies (okay Interstellar was a little hard but that's because Matthew McConaughey was being McConaughey)
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Sound mix problems. From Inception to TDKR to Interstellar. ADR awful.

The latter two films literally had theatres posting signs outside the cinemas telling audiences that it's how it's supposed to sound.
 
I never had problems understanding actors in Nolan films except the final scenes Micheal Cain had in Interstellar.

Sound mixing was a bit strange in that film in other areas as well tho. But other then that, never had a problem.
 
SCULLIBUNDO said:
Sound mix problems. From Inception to TDKR to Interstellar. ADR awful.

The latter two films literally had theatres posting signs outside the cinemas telling audiences that it's how it's supposed to sound.
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Nolan was asked about this in a recent interview, so he's certainly aware of it. Want to say it was Playboy of all things. He expressed a bit of surprise at the reaction to it. I would assume Dunkirk had some tinkering based on that reaction though still out there in terms of usual mixes.

But my problem with the prologue for Dunkirk wasn't necessarily the sound level of dialogue, more that some of these people (namely the ones on the boat, Rylance, etc) have some thick or mumbly British accents. I (mostly) understood Hardy.
 
SCULLIBUNDO said:
Depends how good the story/campaign WB creates around Nolan is.
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Nolan just seems like a guy who could go through his entire career without getting one and then get a "I'm sorry dude" memorial award. Like George Lucas.

Edit: okay that was a shit example. Like Ridley Scott then.
 
SCULLIBUNDO said:
Sound mix problems. From Inception to TDKR to Interstellar. ADR awful.

The latter two films literally had theatres posting signs outside the cinemas telling audiences that it's how it's supposed to sound.
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Yeah, I'd have to agree with this. The last few Nolan movies have all had sound mix issues IMHO. They've been such a bad mix that I honestly thought a few of them were bad theaters, but no, its just how the films are, and it still confuses me as to how that happens with a director as otherwise good as Nolan.
 
Lionel Richie said:
Nolan just seems like a guy who could go through his entire career without getting one and then get a "I'm sorry dude" memorial award. Like George Lucas.
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Nah. Nolan will get one eventually. He'll likely get it for a lesser film of his as a 'it's about time' win.

Scorsese got one for The Departed of all things. Not that Nolan is on Scorsese's level.
 
Years of watching premier League football has payed off. I can understand the UK.

I still have trouble with Scottish accents tho, i would watch Scottish football if I could.
 
SCULLIBUNDO said:
Nah. Nolan will get one eventually. He'll likely get it for a lesser film of his as a 'it's about time' win.

Scorsese got one for The Departed of all things. Not that Nolan is on Scorsese's level.
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I hope so, it would be such an unique moment because Nolan is a guy that gets positive reviews but has his flaws obsessively flaws picked apart. His movies are blockbusters that have a really strong word of mouth, it would be healthy for the industry to celebrate one of his works as the best of the year (either the movie itself or a director/screenwriter award).
 
Lionel Richie said:
I hope so, it would be such an unique moment because Nolan is a guy that gets positive reviews but has his flaws obsessively flaws picked apart. His movies are blockbusters that have a really strong word of mouth, it would be healthy for the industry to celebrate one of his works as the best of the year (either the movie itself or a director/screenwriter award).
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It would be even healthier is the industry celebrated the best film of the year, instead of the best film campaign of the year. Honestly, these films can and are celebrated already on release. They don't need to be recognised by the televised political song and dance that is the Academy.
 
Glad WB give Nolan big budget for his original movies, more glad that his movies are awesome and they break out

Hope Dunkirk will finish with at least Interstellar numbers worldwide
 
Booked the best row/seats at the Cinerama in Seattle for the week after next. Whole gang of BROS and one CHICK going. Very glad to hear it's got a "gimmick" (the countdown) because the trailers just weren't doing it for me.
 
Third rotten review: http://www.fatguysatthemovies.com/dunkirk-movie-review/

In this sense, "Dunkirk" is a postcard that captures all of the power that the visual image has to offer. It looks great. It sounds great. It is often a wonder to behold.

However, all of this is executed at a price. And that price is a complete film.

Like many of Nolan's films, there is no emotional core. More over, with this film specifically, there's very little emotion at all. He requires the viewer to bring his or her own emotion and stubbornly refuses to offer any in return. The result is that if you're not already drinking the Christopher Nolan Kool-Aid when you walk in, you're left with a film populated by cardboard theater standees that blow in the wind.
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