1917
Director: Sam Mendes
Starring: Dean-Charles Chapman, George MacKay, Daniel Mays
Genre: World War Run
Before Mel Gibson was an American, racist, misogynistic, drunken anti-Semite, he was a young Australian actor hoping to make it big. Mad Max (1979) was a breakthrough but it was Gallipoli (1981) that proved he could act.
Gallipoli was, and still is, a great film, one of the best Australian films ever, but also one of the best WW1 films ever. With a relatable, homely back-story, nerve-jangling suspense, perfect direction by Peter Weir and outstanding acting by a couple of budding actors, one destined for greatness and one for soap operas (Mark Lee), Gallipoli has stood the test of time. 1917 will not.
1917 is not a great WW1 film, but is a great piece of film-making. You probably know by now that it was all filmed in one simulated shot, using some very clever CGI, pin-point editing and some technical wizardry. And it works. 1917 successfully takes you along for the ride, along the stinking rat-infested trenches, through the claustrophobic tunnels, across wreck-strewn fields, and into the burning cities and dead-clogged rivers of France towards the end of the war.
It’s just a shame that the story of two young soldiers racing through trenches and across no-man’s land to prevent the death of thousands (hence the Gallipoli similarities) is interesting without being engaging. There’s little of the drama of Gallipoli or the narrative to engage audiences. Instead, 1917 is a movie to look at rather than watch. And the actors are more Mark Lee than Mel Gibson, which is not necessarily a bad thing.
Rating: Three-and-a-half feet of mud.
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