Movie Review: "1917"

You're old enough to kill, but not for votin',
You don't believe in war, but what's that gun you're totin'?
- "Eve Of Destruction," Barry McGuire (1965)

"1917": B+.  As I was exiting the screening room of the Icon West End Theater, I was confident in my appraisal that 1917 deserves a grade of B+.  The story of two young British soldiers sent on a perilous mission into German occupied France in the early stages of World War I easily manages to maintain an interest level sufficient to carry through two hours.  Much of the media hype surrounding this film was about the "single shot" technique used by director Sam Mendes.  Employing a style occasionally used by Alfred Hitchcock and Robert Altman, the camera work is so fluid and mobile that the viewer never loses sight of at least one of the two infantrymen.  Some critics have found this method to be superficial and distracting, while others feel that the perpetual up-close motion adds to the intensity.  Not to be a weenie, but I am in the camp which looks upon Mendes' choice as being neither a distraction nor a huge benefit.  There are other reasons to favor this movie irrespective of its single shot filming technique.

Unfortunately for me as a reviewer, the facet of the film which I found most unforgettable and impactful is one which I can not describe as much as I'd like without spoiling the viewing experience for you, the readers.  (I wonder if I should have used the singular, "reader.")  About as far as I dare go is to write this: An event occurs approximately a third of the way into the story which utterly takes me by surprise, partly because of the movie’s pre-release marketing.  Hint: If you have ever seen Hitchcock's 1960 film Psycho, you might discern a similarity.

Also in 1917's plus column is the endearing magnetism of the two leading men, Lance Corporal Tom Blake (Dean Charles Chapman) and especially Lance Corporal Will Schofield (George MacKay).  This is not your typical war story.  Although there certainly are battlefields, they are deserted.  In fact, the rolling French meadows are beautiful, seeming as if they don't belong in something as horrible as a war.  Few soldiers are killed on the screen, and yet corpses abound, some draped over barbed wire fences, others piled in shallow troughs.  The focus is not on generals, or for that matter, any officers at all.  The concentration of 1917 is strictly on the two lance corporals who appear barely old enough to tote a rifle.  It is this simplicity which personalizes the drama for us.

The story arc of 1917 is straightforward.  Blake and Schofield are charged with getting word to another British battalion several miles away that the purported recent withdrawal by the German troops from a land sector is not what it seems.  The Germans, unbeknownst to the battalion, are lying in wait to ambush the Brits as soon as they advance to the territory exited by the Germans.  To prevent the slaughter of sixteen hundred of their countrymen, one of whom is Blake's older brother, the two buddies must make their way across the treacherous landscape, replete with places an enemy sniper might be hiding.  Blake and Schofield's mission is ordered by General Erinmore, played by Colin Firth in a two minute cameo.  (Note: The only other "big name" in the cast, Benedict Cumberbatch, also makes a cameo appearance near movie's end.)

The script has some head-scratching features which prevent it from attaining a grade in the "A" range.  From my list of six or seven, here are three.  First, if the lives of 1600 men are at stake, why did Erinmore send only two foot soldiers to deliver the warning?  And why not use an air drop?

Second, Blake and Schofield risk life and limb to maneuver slowly from General Erinmore's long trenches to an abandoned small farm.  Several minutes after their arrival, a convoy of British military trucks rumbles down a dirt road which runs next to the farm's property as if their drivers were out for a holiday lark.  They are traveling from the same direction as were Blake and Schofield.  If it was so easy for the truckers to get to the farm, why did the two lance corporals have to endure such a miserable walk to get there?  Apparently hitching a ride was out of the question.

Third, there is a pre-dawn scene occurring in a bombed out village.  A woman, her baby and a couple of combatants are the only ones around.  But near sunrise we hear the tolling of church bells.  It's hard to imagine that a Jerry or a Brit took it upon himself to perform that task.  It must have been Quasimodo in the belfry.

1917 received ten nominations for the upcoming Academy Awards, including Mendes for Best Director and Roger Deakins for Best Cinematography.  The much-acclaimed Deakins is considered a favorite, while Mendes has already won a Golden Globe for direction of this film.  The movie itself is one of nine nominated for Best Picture; it has already won the recently presented Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Drama.  MacKay might have a beef for not being recognized with at least an Academy nomination, but at age twenty-seven he will have more opportunities.