Most Americans who are casual WWII historians don't know about the Battle of Dunkirk because the United States hadn't joined the war yet. It happend in 1940, well before Pearl Harbor got the US into the war.
However, the Battle of Dunkirk (and the ensuing evacuation) was a huge moment in the early part of WWII. Essentially, the German Army had the British Expeditionary Force and the French army completely surrounded with their backs to the English Channel. The Germans assumed the channel was a backstop, but the British used it as an escape route.
Although the evacuation was mostly successful, the British loss of materiel was enormous, as massive amounts of artillery, tanks, trucks, cars, and ammunition was simply abandoned in France as the men evacuated back to England. It was one of those battles where the success was simply not being entirely annihilated. Also, the evacuation was done in part with the assistance of hundreds of small non-military vessels such as fishing boats, pleasure boats, etc. It was an amazing display of the British flexibility and ingenuity to avoid a complete defeat.
Although the evacuation was mostly successful, the British loss of materiel was enormous, as massive amounts of artillery, tanks, trucks, cars, and ammunition was simply abandoned in France as the men evacuated back to England. It was one of those battles where the success was simply not being entirely annihilated. Also, the evacuation was done in part with the assistance of hundreds of small non-military vessels such as fishing boats, pleasure boats, etc. It was an amazing display of the British flexibility and ingenuity to avoid a complete defeat.
Accordingly, the movie Dunkirk is going to be one that shows courage in the face of overwhelming odds, and it looks pretty good.
Christopher Nolan is directing it, and I've liked all his movies. Also, Kenneth Branagh is in this move, and he's a great actor.
I categorize movies into ones that I see in theaters (the best, I don't do this often); ones I wait to get on PPV (a large category); and ones that I wait until they are just out for free.
I may go see this in theaters. Thoughts?
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