Review: 1917

Set in Northern France during WWI, George MacKay and Dean-Charles Chapman are young soldiers given a mission (by a general played by Colin Firth) to go behind enemy lines and pass on ‘stand down’ orders to a battalion (that includes Chapman’s brother). The battalion is set to go on a raid, but the Germans are actually expecting them and will ambush them. Mark Strong, Andrew Scott, and Benedict Cumberbatch play other officers the soldiers come across on their journey.

 

Somewhat short and simplistic, but excellently directed and shot WWI film from Sam Mendes (“Jarhead”, “Road to Perdition”, the underrated “SPECTRE”), co-written by Krysty Wilson-Cairns (who has apparently written nine episodes of “Penny Dreadful”). It’s a small story within the war being told, but it’s an effectively told one. It’s kinda like the climax of “Gallipoli” stretched out to feature length, with superb cinematography by a deservedly Oscar-winning Roger Deakins (“Jarhead”, “The Assassination of Jesse James By the Coward Robert Ford”, “Blade Runner 2049”). It’s some of Deakins’ best work, you can practically smell the mud on the ground. I really liked all of the long takes from one terrain to another, some being disarmingly flowery and beautiful. Mendes takes a leaf out of Hitchcock’s book by disguising a few cheeky ‘edits’, but he’s a lot more effective at it than Hitchcock was on his interesting failed experiment “Rope”. Unlike that film, it doesn’t come across as distracting or gimmicky at the expense of the story being told. It’s just very clever and effective filmmaking, and boy would I not have wanted to be a cast or crew member to make a mistake during shooting here.

 

George MacKay couldn’t be more perfectly cast in the lead, his gaunt but expressive face is evidence of a kid who has seen a heck of a lot in the war and has had to grow up a lot in a very short amount of time. These were mere boys being sent off to fight and die, something that I’ll never understand, inevitable as war tends to be even these days (Thankfully without conscription). Dean-Charles Chapman is fine too, whilst a no-nonsense Colin Firth, Mark Strong, and Benedict Cumberbatch contribute fine star cameos. Perhaps the film doesn’t have the greatest amount of character depth, but like Ridley Scott’s fantastic “Black Hawk Down”, this is such an immersive experience that you kinda feel like you are a character in the film.

 

Immersive, stunningly directed and shot war film is more than just a clever bit of filmmaking. It’s also an engrossing story, apparently inspired by stories Mendes’ own grandfather told him about his experiences in the war.

 

Rating: B-