Softwing Most undeservingly overhyped movie of all time??

Twilightfa Watch something else. There are very few redeeming qualities to this film.

Abegail Noëlle While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

Edwin The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

coolantic Ho ho! I see we're all at it, having seen Nolan's version of events but, coincidentally (I'm sure) More 4 Channel screened the earlier version of Dunkirk last weekend. Although I'd seen it before, I just had to compare the two films; just like everyone else! Anything war, with John Mills, is a must-see for a start. I've never seen him give a bad performance, whether he's playing a middle-class character, or his familiar chirpy cockney type as here. The action, though familiar, was well executed, featuring rearguard disruption of the German advance but not shying away from the brutal realities e.g. when the refugee column is machine-gunned from the air. The expletives uttered by the soldiers, though tame by today's standards, appear quite strong for the time, as well as occasionally humorous. "Don't mind him, he's just a moaning bleeder!" British viewers will be amused early on in the film when Flanagan and Allen are featured singing "Hang out our washing on the Siegfried Line" accompanied by an on-screen animated map showing the German advance and the British retreat across France. This idea was later copied for the title sequence for the TV comedy "Dad's Army" which also featured Bud Flanagan singing. The beach sequences are very similar to those in the newer film including the action on The Mole with recently loaded ships being immediately sunk and soldiers remarking on the number of times they've had to go back. However, the beach and dunes seem more crowded and chaotic during the air attacks which, this being a black and white film, tend to feature footage of real aircraft. The common view of the missing RAF was also emphasised when ground crew airman Michael Bate is harangued on the beach by angry soldiers and advised to change his uniform for battle dress. The little boats sequence is particularly well done even if the stoicism of the largely middle-class owners seems a little corny now. Richard Attenborough plays a self-satisfied, slightly cowardly factory owner who eventually sees where his duty lies and adds his craft to the flotilla. Bernard Lee plays a steady middle-aged reporter who is not averse to openly criticising those in charge of the war effort but who is also prepared to do his bit to help out. The big difference between this and the new film is that we get character development and get to know, like, empathise with and dislike them. As with any film of the time there is a host of well-known British character actors in the many roles featured. It's fun playing the "whatsisname game." Well done Leslie Norman, you have it over Chris Nolan.

tieman64 Director Leslie Norman's "Dunkirk" tells the story of Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of British and French troops from the beaches of Dunkirk during WW2. Much of the film follows Corporal Tubby Binns (John Mills), an out-of-his-depth platoon leader who finds his unit trapped behind enemy lines. The film's best moments watch as this rag-tag bunch navigate the French countryside, skirmishing with Germans and doing their best to evade superior forces.Another subplot tells a familiar, propagandistic tale of war-time responsibility. Here Richard Attenborough plays a businessmen who casts aside cowardice and complacency in favour for rallying behind Britain's war effort. Running parallel to this is the story of Charles Foreman (Bernard Lee), a journalist who tries to shake up his indifferent readers."Dunkirk" ends with a massive set piece which won't impress modern viewers. Still, this is an interesting, idiosyncratic war film, and one which offers some fine views of rural, post-war Britain.7.5/10 – See "The Big Lift". Worth one viewing.

karltrowitz Dunkirk is one of the best war movies ever made.John Mills puts in a great performance as Tubby Binns, as does Bernard Lee as private boat owner "doing his bit" for the country. I thought some of the best scenes were around the battle with the artillery battery in the woods. Some good special effects and totally believable scenes. The futility of war is also shown to good effect when the Stukas arrive and bomb the battery.One thing that really amazed me, was the inclusion of a "real" German halftrack during the scene where the bridge was being demolished. For a '50's war movie this is a special treat, much better than seeing the usual American halftracks with big crosses on their sides.All in all, one of my favourite war movies, one that somehow captures the ambiance of those terrible times.

screenman 'Dunkirk' was the event that really cemented WW2 in British minds. Up to that point it had been more a newsworthy disturbance in a foreign land, following on the much maligned 'phony' war.For the first time, those at home - at least in the home counties - could see for themselves the face of defeat in legions of haggard and bandaged returnees.This movie takes us through events in a familiar well-paced documentary-like way that makes old British war movies so watchable. There are few excessive heroics, just a gradual realisation that greater effort is needed and a reconciliation to it. Individuals are about to have their pleasure craft commandeered. Even in the 1940's, to own your own boat for pleasure was a very middle-class activity, and so we see this 'Dad's Navy' confused and reluctant at first, but eventually volunteering themselves along with their boats. They still have little idea what awaits them.In France, things are falling apart fast. The collapsing British forces are shown in microcosm by a company of squaddies led by working-class 'corporal' John Mills, complete with phony cockney accent. Constantly harassed by the encroaching German army, they manage to stay one step ahead and reach Dunkirk.Only soldiers can be evacuated. The supplies and substance of an army must be abandoned, destroying as much as possible rather than allowing it to fall into enemy hands.Small-ship civilians get trapped ashore and share in the bombardment with soldiers. Some are killed. There's a lot of men and a lot of equipment shown at times. It's clear that the army were involved in the movie's making. Cabin cruisers explode, loaded ships are bombed. Although today, the bombs falling on the dunes bear more similarity to thunder flashes, for its time, the overall effect is creditable. There are believable performances all round from a cast of reliable, regular stalwarts. And, necessary for every movie; we are made to care about them.The retreat from Dunkirk was the first of several Great British reversals that were needed before the nation took its plight seriously enough to galvanise itself into a professional war-effort. This movie doesn't moralise or sentimentalise much. Dunkirk was chaos that was saved from disaster by just a little bit of order and a great deal of courage. Not to mention luck.Well worth a watch even today. It may be a drama but it tells you as much as a reference book.