A provocative historical drama as Winston Churchill, in the early days of his prime ministership, is confronted with a possible invasion of Britain from Nazi forces. Virtually the entire British army is stranded on the beaches of Dunkirk.
Unpopular within his own Conservative party, a war-mongering Churchill (a career-defining performance from Gary Oldman) is at odds with his appeasement-seeking colleagues. War in the corridors of power and on the Continent forces Churchill to decide whether to sue for peace or fight on against incredible odds.
Director Joe Wright focuses on the claustrophobic machinations of parliament and underground war rooms. The result is the fiery determination and irascible wit of Churchill at the forefront of a wordy, manipulative narrative that has no intention of being subtle in the telling of its stirring story.
Nominated for 6 Oscars in 2018 including best film & cinematography (Bruno Delbonnel), won 2 (Gary Oldman & make-up).
Rating: 71%
Director: Joe Wright (Atonement, Anna Karenina)
Writer: Anthony McCarten (The Theory of Everything, Death of a Superhero)
Main cast: Gary Oldman (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Harry Potter & the Prisoner of Azkaban), Kristin Scott Thomas (The Party, Suite Français), Ben Mendelsohn (Animal Kingdom, Mississippi Grind)
(A perfect complement to Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk)
An Opinion or Two 
This was a far better film than the much hyped Dunkirk. Oldman’s accent slipped a few times – he made Churchill,sound a northerner at one point – but it was still a good performance. He made a better Churchill than John Lithgo in ThenCrown (terrible piece of miscasting )
LikeLike
Yes – I heard the northern accent 🙂 It was a significantly better film than the very recent ‘Churchill’ with Brian Cox in the lead: extraordinarily, the two films managed to be essentially the same story even though set at the beginning of the war and the end: Clemie Churchill a significant prop in both films.
Enjoyed what was essentially a domestic drama but I loved the visceral beauty of Dunkirk.
LikeLike