DUNKIRK | FAMILY MOVIE REVIEW INFORMATION FOR PARENTS AND KIDS

"DUNKIRK"
(2017) (Tom Hardy, Mark Rylance) (PG-13)

QUICK TAKE:: Drama: Various WWII military figures and civilians must contend with the attempts to evacuate thousands of Allied troops who are surrounded by German forces at the seaside city of Dunkirk, France.

PLOT:

It's 1940 and German military divisions have pushed Allied troops to the coast and surrounded them at the seaside city of Dunkirk, France. Among those stuck there is Tommy (FIONN WHITEHEAD), a British soldier who manages to avoid German snipers who pick off those around him in the city, leaving him out on the shore with thousands of other soldiers awaiting evacuation. Overseeing that operation is naval Commander Bolton (KENNETH BRANAGH) and Col. Winnant (JAMES D'ARCY) from the army, but they don't have enough rescue ships and the water is too shallow to pick up those on the shore. That leaves them at the mercy of German fighter planes that routinely bomb and strafe the beach with machine gun fire.

Realizing a possible way out, Tommy and another soldier, Gibson (ANEURIN BARNARD), grab a stretcher and run a wounded man toward a relief ship, hoping to set sail on that. When that doesn't work, they try other means and eventually end up alongside another soldier, Alex (HARRY STYLES), who joins them in their quest to get out of harm's way.

Hoping to help along those lines is Mr. Dawson (MARK RYLANCE), a middle-aged civilian who's heeded the call of Winston Churchill for all available boats to head across the English channel and rescue as many as men as possible. Joining him is his teenage son, Peter (TOM GLYNN-CARNEY), and that young man's 17-year-old friend, George (BARRY KEOGHAN) on their small boat. Along the way, they come across a sunken ship with just one survivor (CILLIAN MURPHY) and rescue him. But they must then contend with his PTSD and strong desire not to return to Dunkirk.

Those willingly headed there, however, also include RAF pilots Farrier (TOM HARDY) and Collins (JACK LOWDEN) who fly their Spitfire fighters in search of German fighters and bombers wishing to inflict harm on the Allied forces. Engaging in dogfights with the enemy, they do what they can to protect the ongoing evacuation.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?: Older teens might, especially if they're fans of the director (Christopher Nolan), anyone in the cast, or WWII related movies.

WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: PG-13: For intense war experience and some language.

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