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1917- rm

One of us was especially looking forward to what we hoped to be a classic war movie about World War I. Two British soldiers (Dean-Charles Chapman and George McKay) are chosen to make a dangerous journey through the trenches and battlefields to reach some other troops who are planning to advance on German troops but unknowingly will be led into an ambush which will destroy 1,500 troops, including the brother of one of the two chosen messengers. There was no radio communication available because it had been disrupted and we are not sure why additional teams of messengers were not chosen for this important mission. As you would expect, there is running, crawling through smoldering battlefields, occasional enemy encountering enemy soldiers, and even an air attack. One of the main features of this film is that director Sam Mendes gives the impression that the entire movie was done in one continuous take. Unfortunately, it is repetitious and predictable with few surprises, but we certainly do not believe it will go down as a classic war film despite the Oscar hype. However, battlefield and war aficionados might want to see it, but others may choose to skip it. (2020)