Review added September 9, 2018

Darkest Hour

Review by Jouni Pohjola

It wouldn't have occurred to me to hire Gary Oldman, regardless of his undeniable acting chops, to play Winston Churchill in a movie but Joe Wright, director of Darkest Hour thought different. And so, with the help of Kazuhiro Tsuji's jaw-dropping prosthetic makeup and hair design, we get treated an impressive and Oscar-worthy performance that outshines the movie framing it.

Anthony McCarten's script deals with the first five weeks of Churchill's tenure as the Prime Minister, when Wehrmacht forces were steamrolling through continental Europe, forcing Britain to the very brink of capitulating to Nazi Germany. Despite being touted as a war drama, the movie steers almost entirely clear of actually showing any fighting: we see a quick glimpse into the fall of Calais but really nothing of Dunkirk, where British forces were pincered by the Germans — this last possibly in order to avoid undue comparison with Christopher Nolan's juggernaut war movie from the same year (which also somewhat bizarrely shirks from showing serious violence).

Instead, we get to follow in detail the political maneuvering unfolding in the British government, where Churchill must face off with various dignitaries pressing for negotiating peace instead of fighting on against the threat we are only cursorily shown in the movie. The lack of fire and fury no doubt makes the movie more palatable to general audiences but also makes it rather slow-moving and somewhat under-powered. The script also plays fast and loose with some (though not all) of the historical facts, particularly near the end of the movie (see for example here) and some have even dismissed it as "Brexit propaganda".

While the story being told really doesn't rise above that of an average BBC telemovie and the by-and-large claustrophobic sets don't make for awe-inspiring cinematography either, the other actors at least don't lag far behind Oldman in their performances. Particular nods go to Ben Mendelsohn for pulling a stolid George VI and Kristin Scott Thomas for her portrayal of Clementine Churchill with what limited screen time they are allowed. The film really hinges on Oldman's performance and he gets all the space he needs to deliver a really good one.

All in all, it's a decent movie but not a stellar one. And don't expect the requisite Corgi sighting to rescue it either: this particular one is definitely of the "blink and you miss it" variety. In a scene where Churchill is having his Monday lunch with George VI, one of the royal Corgis sneaks under the table and Churchill slips down a morsel for it to wolf down. And that's all folks! Well, I suppose one couldn't expect a Corgi to take more than a second or two of screen time, considering what most of the supporting human cast gets.

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Review added September 9, 2018