1917 Film Review
Directed by Sam Mendes. Starring George MacKay, Dean-Charles Chapman, Colin Firth, Andrew Scott, Mark Strong, Richard Madden, Benedict Cumberbatch.
The fate of hundreds of soldiers depends on the desperate journey of just two in Sam Mendes’ critically-acclaimed First World War epic 1917. It’s a road well worth travelling.
Set around the Allied advance on the Hindenburg Line between Arras and Bullecourt in April 1917, the film follows two British soldiers, Blake and Schofield, as cut communication lines see them sent on a vital mission to deliver new orders to battalions that are about to charge into disaster. The presence of Blake’s brother amongst the potentially doomed soldiers provides a distinct thread of personal tension as the two men stumble into the inevitable complications in their race against time.
There has been a good deal of hype about the central technical feat of 1917, and it lives up to the promise. The entire narrative has been filmed to look like a single continuous shot, with the camera following behind and weaving in front of the central characters as their journey passes from the supply lines, through No Man’s Land, into occupied territory, and onward to the front lines. It’s impressive cinematography and editing work that makes the film a very immersive experience, as the limited perspective means that the viewer has little chance to see what’s ahead before the protagonists themselves experience it. By the end it would have taken a hardy viewer not to be on the edge of their seat, and in the quieter moments there was barely a breath taken throughout the theatre.
The film has been broadly well received in First World War history circles, with praise given for accuracy, subtlety, and appropriate diversity of background characters. The depiction of the war-shattered landscapes of France is detailed, with the camera sparing the viewer no trench rat or broken body. Some of the scenes are rendered with such iconic beauty that they are sure to become cinema classics, in particular one that brings the night-time horrors of the decimated, burning town of Ècoust to life beneath a cascade of flares.
Amidst all the acclaim the film is receiving, it’s been curious to see the lack of acknowledgement given to lead actor George MacKay and his intense, understated performance as Schofield. Ultimately 1917 might be termed historical fiction from below, focussing as closely as possible on the individual story within the bigger picture. Both lead actors inhabit their roles so convincingly that one might mistake them for any ordinary First World War soldier, because in the context of the story that’s what they are. But the quietly powerful ending to the film reminds that every ordinary individual swept up in the conflict had personal stakes. War swallowed countless men who were everything to someone at home, and many of their experiences were lost to time.
Most of Western Australia’s battalions on the Western Front went into action at nearby Bullecourt a month after the events of this story, and the award recommendations for runners in those units are a stark reminder of the real history on which the film is based. First and foremost 1917 is an extraordinary piece of cinematic storytelling, utilising clever technology and simple stakes to create a compelling narrative. It’s also a glimpse of a personal path through the First World War that builds on a solid base of history, and will leave viewers thinking for a long time to come.
Claire Greer