‘Probably the best scene in war movie history’: Why Tarantino loves Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk

In a 2020 interview with the Rewatchable podcast, the Pulp Fiction director shared his love for Christopher Nolan’s films, particularly Dunkirk (2017). According to the veteran director, it was only after several viewings of the film that he made it into his list of favourites.

“I had an interesting experience the first time. I don’t know what I thought when I first saw it. I just watched the show. I could not see anything but the show. I liked the movie, but the performance almost confused me before the experience.”

His first viewing in Los Angeles, during a screening for directors, did not fully convince him: “I don’t think I felt anything emotional. I was impressed. But I didn’t know what impressed me…“

Then, as FranceInfo recalls, came the second viewing, which this time excited him more for the simple reason that he had seen it in London, especially the fact that the British were proud of the film. “They were proud of the British film about events in British history. It was one of the most pleasant feelings I experienced after watching the film. I had the feeling that everyone in the theater was watching this movie together. Dunkirk in London was something to see, the scales returned to me. But even then, for this second viewing, I was hooked on the show. I couldn’t go beyond the show.“

Never two without three

Third time will be the charm after all: “This is the third time that I have seen behind the scenes and become interested in the people whose stories are being told. Finally, I saw the forest beyond the trees. Dunkirk is a film that rewards the effort of re-watching it.“

For Quentin Tarantino, reasons Christopher Nolan The making of this war film was different from other directors who had made films about major battles before: Dunkirk not a history lesson”Even learning a history lesson from him.“At least that’s how it feels.

“He made a film and finally told us the story of Dunkirk. But that’s something secondary to the sensory experience of watching Dunkirk“, he explained.

One of the advantages of the film, according to Tarantino, is its “idealized” aspect even in defeat: “The British romanticize their defeats as other countries romanticize their triumphs. And that’s ultimately one of the film’s defining features.”

While he didn’t find the film exciting or heartbreaking, he was impressed by some of the shots Nolan did, including what Tarantino considers one of the best shots of any war movie: the film’s opening scene, shot in Malo-les. Baines, where the character Tom (Fiennes Whitehead) is on the ground with his head in the sand and covering his ears while bombs explode in the background, a scene he describes as “Probably the best scene in war movie history… BOOM! Boom! Boom! Boom!“. It is said.

He adds: “What is interesting about the film is that the children are not particularly the heroes. Tom Hardy is heroic. But children, no. Children are just trying to survive“, he added. Another strong point of the film.

Nolan, the virtuoso

for tarantino Dunkirk It immediately moved from seventh place to second place on his list of favorite movies (2010s). Apart from the opening shot, the director has also mentioned several other scenes, including the rocking of the ships, as standout shots in the film.

“One thing is that if he can do something in real life, he will do it. He has four or five great shots. From an artist, a great director. As the ships tilt and the water pours in, strange angles that show the ship capsizing. He does this all the time throughout the movie. He makes it an artistic experience.“

He also praised the virtuosity of Nolan, who has managed to excel in various genres, from superhero films to science fiction and historical war dramas. said this to him Dunkirk At least at that time there was “Mountaintop”, in particular, his best film to date. “He approaches this film like a great filmmaker, he tackles a big issue and brings Warner Bros. With him, as well Stanley Kubrick would bring Warner Bros. with him“

Released in 2017 Dunkirkwhich tells the story of the famous evacuation of Allied troops in May 1940, earned $526 million at the worldwide box office, making it the highest-grossing World War II film until Oppenheimer’s release last year.

Dunkirk It was praised for its screenplay, direction, editing, music, sound design and cinematography so much so that the feature film was awarded three Oscars: Best Cinematography Editing, Best Sound Editing and Best Sound Mixing.

Dunkirk is currently available to watch again on VOD.

Watch Quentin Tarantino’s full interview below: