Darkest Hour Review

3.0 Stars

 

In the 1930s, Winston Churchill (Gary Oldman) spearheaded the efforts to warn about the dangers of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Germany.  British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was forced into  retirement in May of 1940 when Parliament grew tired of his lack of leadership, foresight and results against the impending War. Churchill replaced Chamberlain as Prime Minister of Great Britain, in the early days of World War II.  In the early stages of the war in 1940 and 1941, the British Empire was nearly alone in their opposition to Hitler, and Churchill's speeches and radio broadcasts were a source of inspiration in this dark time.  One of his most famous and inspirational speeches included "we shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender."

Darkest Hour is the historical story of the early days of World War II as Hitler began his conquest of Western Europe.  Churchill had warned about this and now Great Britain was all but solitary in their defiance of the Nazis.  A peace treaty was proposed and it was now up to Churchill to decide what to do.  According to the treaty, Hitler would stop his war with Western Europe provided that Great Britain did not interfere with his plans to move east and conquer the USSR.  Churchill was never a fan of the treaty and felt that bold retaliation, standing their ground against the Nazis, would be their only hope of true survival.  But, Churchill faced a lack of support from his own party, and even felt the pressure to not only entertain the idea of the treaty, but to accept it or face his own removal as Prime Minister.  While battling with his doubts about the treaty, his doubts about the chances of Great Britain's survival whether they signed the treaty or not, and his own doubts about his ability to properly discern what was best for his country, Churchill took his fears and doubts to the people.  They overwhelmingly expressed their disdain for the Nazis and their resolve to never give in.  Thus, Churchill rejected the offer. 

Director Joe Wright is no stranger to epic historical and moving stories as he has already tackled Pride & Prejudice, Anna Karenina, and Atonement which earned him a Golden Globe nomination for Directing in 2008.  While Atonement did win for Best Picture, Wright lost out to Julian Schnabel who directed The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.  While neither Darkest Hour nor Joe Wright have been nominated for a Golden Globe, Oldman has been nominated for his portrayal of Winston Churchill, and an Oscar nomination is all but guaranteed as he pulled of one of those rare performances where you do not see the actor on the screen, but rather their character come to life.  While all the actors who have been nominated and won an Oscar over the last two decades have deserved their recognition, perhaps the most notable was Daniel Day-Lewis's win in 2013 for his performance as Abraham Lincoln.  Oldman accomplishes the same brilliant execution.  Not once did I notice that it was Gary Oldman, but rather I saw nothing but Sir Winston Churchill in the movie Darkest Hour.  It was inspired, flawless and genius.

Unfortunately, for me, the rest of the movie just didn't hold up to Oldman's efforts.  I expected Wright's latest work to be a moving, gripping and tense look behind the scenes of the early days of World War II.  I had high expectations for Darkest Hour and gave a 4 Star Prediction.  To me, it was slow, uninspiring, dull and dragging, especially considering the film is about one man's decision in a time that effectively helped to lead his country and the world out of one of the darkest times in world history.  It is worth watching, for Oldman's performance alone; however, if you haven't seen it already in the theatres, wait for it to come out for rent.  It's definitely worth renting, and I might watch it again, but I'm pretty sure it won't find a home in my permanent collection.  Therefore, I'm lowing my rating to 3 Stars.  So, what movie will be on my mind next? We shall see.