Darkest Hour- A Confined Masterpiece

Sorry for the lack of content this month guys. Everything's been super hectic and I barely have time to sit down let alone blog!!! But thats going to change going into next month I promise. Anyway It's time to review my first film of the year and it's one that has a lot of buzz right now! So heres what I think of Joe Wright's brilliant The Darkest Hour.

SUMMARY TIME: Britain is in the middle of World War 2 and faith in the current Prime Minister is low so when he resigns a coalition government is formed and someone has to be be Prime minister. Everyone wants Lord Hallifax (Stephen Delane) but as he won't do it they are stuck with the eccentric Winston Churchill (Gary Oldman). The King (Ben Mendelsohn) in particular is very unsure abut this new arrangement but with the war getting worse and troops stranded on a certain beach well he might be the best choice Britain has.

We start with Churchill in his house an enigmatic bogeyman in his pink pyjamas scaring everyone with his bizarre antics and in this case frightening his new typist Elizabeth Layton (Lily James). Elizabeth functions as our eyes in this section bringing us in to a bizarre situation and introducing us to a man we felt we already knew. She travels with him throughout the film and is a fantastic character that never wants to threatens to steal the spotlight but adds the human element that could have easily been lost in the maze of war rooms and smoke.

Similarly confined is Churchill himself. Throughout the winding corridors he's never truly freed from his surroundings. His larger than life persona is trapped in a hard job, the judgements of his peers, his family and the hideous situation the country is trapped in. Every choice he makes must be argued and he seems to be  trapped as the big fish in a small pond. In particular Churchill is trapped between two options to surrender and engage in peace talks with Hitler mediated by Mussolini or wage war. Of course History tells us which one was picked in the end but the build up to this decision in the film is edge of your seat stuff.

Gary Oldman puts in an impeccable performance to the point that you will forget it's him altogether. Another standout is the King who's conversations with churchill work as a comedy of manners. Him utterly unable to say what he means whilst Churchill says it anyway. The two locked in an uncomfortable alliance that neither of them were prepared for.

Ultimately being the last of three films about Dunkirk (Nolan's Dunkirk and Lone Sherfig's Their Finest reviews both linked) this in no way takes away from Joe Wright's brilliantly confined, expertly crafted film. It's spare, pared back and yet brilliantly enthralling. A must watch.