1917 - Sam Mendes' Epic WWI movie

[faizoff]

I went and saw this last night at the theater and this movie was a visual treat.

With Roger Deakins' gorgeous cinematography all the shots look phenomenal on the big screen, I'm kicking myself for not seeing in Dolby but the regular theater itself was really good.
The story is very simple and it's unfortunate the trailer gave away so many of the cool setups, but since I never watch trailers before the movie I had no idea and was amazed by each scene.
The biggest talking point is of course how it all looks like one giant 2 hour shot ala Birdman, I thought it would be a hindrance but I was wrong.
I would really advise seeing this in the theater if you can because the accompanying music with the visuals is amazing to see on the big screen.
In my theater, there was a big group of frat boys who spoke non stop before the movie started and I thought great, this is going to be a terrible experience, but once the movie started, they shut up the entire time and not a single peep out of anyone in the theater until it ended.
I'm really debating if I should go see it in Dolby now.

[El Barto]

That actually looked like a movie I wouldn't mind seeing but probably wouldn't. However, I didn't know it was Sam Mendes. Mendes, gorgeous cinematography, and one long shot might actually compel to go to see it. Unfortunately, as you said, it seems like we already know the whole story at this point.

Also, since you say one long two hour shot, does that mean that the story is told in realtime?

[faizoff]

It pretty much is close to being realtime with some obvious liberties.

I think the story is actually the least important aspect of the movie truthfully. The journey of the soldiers and how it all unfolds is a great watch. Plus you're always wondering how the hell did they shoot this scene while watching it?

I'm a sucker for war movies esp well shot ones so I'm going to be biased towards them.

[El Barto]

It pretty much is close to being realtime with some obvious liberties.

I think the story is actually the least important aspect of the movie truthfully. The journey of the soldiers and how it all unfolds is a great watch. Plus you're always wondering how the hell did they shoot this scene while watching it?

I'm a sucker for war movies esp well shot ones so I'm going to be biased towards them.

I'm a sucker for well shot war movies, as well. The Longest Day has always been one of my favorites precisely because of the "how the hell did they shoot this" component. Modern movies have kind of lost me on that, though, because the answer is usually that they didn't shoot it. Pearl Harbor was a fine example. There comes a point where things become so spectacular that it's just there for the gee-whiz aspect. I'm assuming Mendes would do it right, which is why I'm now more interested in seeing it.

[faizoff]

I wasn't going to see it initially but I really regretted not watching Dunkirk in the theater.

Additional note: I have the blu-ray for The Longest Day and have been meaning to watch it since forever, it's a 3 hour movie and I want to be in the dedicated zone to watch it in its entirety without breaks.

[El Barto]

I wasn't going to see it initially but I really regretted not watching Dunkirk in the theater.

Additional note: I have the blu-ray for The Longest Day and have been meaning to watch it since forever, it's a 3 hour movie and I want to be in the dedicated zone to watch it in its entirety without breaks.

TLD is polarizing. A friend of mine has twice tried twice to watch it and just can't get very far. There's no cohesive story, but rather 25 different stories running in parallel. I find it captivating. And if I decide to watch that I plan on following it up with Tora Tora Tora. Not only is it very similar in style and scope, but the circumstances of both D-Day and Pearl were just about the same. Luck and skill vs an adversary that's unlucky and complacent. In both cases everything went right for one side and the other side just couldn't catch a break, either due to misfortune or incompetence. It's fascinating to watch the fortunes of war play out in two different directions.

[Cool Chris]

I'm a sucker for well shot war movies, as well. The Longest Day has always been one of my favorites precisely because of the "how the hell did they shoot this" component.

Have not seen that film but wanted to comment on the second half of your statement, as it is something I appreciate as well. I remember watching Spielberg talk about discussing Lawrence of Arabia with David Lean and how they did a shot over the vast desert with no footprints anywhere in sight, and Spielberg asking "That's fine for the first take, how the hell did you do the second one?"

[MirrorMask]

Saw the movie, absolutely fantastic and impressive. The good balance between "how the hell are they doing it?" and being immersed in the tragedy of war.

I love how it starts the same way it ends, chilling beneath a tree, with the initial scene that leads you directly into the trenches. Some scenes absolutely memorable were the run from the germans shooting at him, with the camera turning from the black of the night and the fires burning to the other side of the town with the first light of dawn already breaking before the jump in the river, and the desperate run outside of the trenches at the end to warn the colonel (Hi Dr. Strange!) while the soldiers were charning. In other situations him slamming against other soldiers a couple of times would have been hilarious, but it's more realistic, no way he could have ran in that chaos without slamming into someone a couple of times.

I didn't even recognize half of the cast. Colin Firth as the general totally passed me by, I recognized Mark Strong only with a close up, and only at the end of the movie reading about I realize that "Tommen" was in it and that his brother was.... Rob Stark. What a crossover