2017 ( USA | UK ) ( Biography, Drama, History )
DIRECTOR: Joe Wright
STARRING: Gary Oldman, Lily James, Kristin Scott Thomas
Winner of two Oscars, Darkest Hour is set during a brief period in the summer of 1940 when the fate of the nation hung in the balance. It is the same period covered in Dunkirk and Churchill but director Joe Wright invests Darkest Hour with all the intrigue and momentum of a page turning Robert Harris thriller, the film moving with an energy that reflects the urgent need for decisive action. The film explores the pressure on Churchill to make peace with Hitler and justify his appointment as prime minister. Oldman’s Churchill is devious, alcoholic and conceited, but also resilient and perceptive. He’s riven with guilt about Gallipoli.
Darkest Hour is a rousing, immensely entertaining crowd-pleaser and Gary Oldman is never less than sensational.
(2hr 5min)