A film tailor-made to showcase Gary Oldman's chameleon acting prowess, "Darkest Hour" is a good, not great film that plays as a terrific accompanyment to Christopher Nolan's "Dunkirk."
Set during the lowest point of World War II (at least for the Allies), "Hour" focuses on the rise of Winston Churchill (Oldman) as German forces close in on them and the war effort grows continually bleaker. When Neville Chamberlain is finally forced out of power, Churchill is installed, though no one really seems happy about that.
The film's greatest moments come when Oldman showcases not only his ability to deliver a thunderous address to the British government, but when he lets Churchill's quirks shine through. His Churchill, much like Woody Harrelson's Lyndon B. Johnson, is a man of many shades. Both are both stately and buffoonish, and Oldman navigates that tightrope walk with ease. Oldman'sNarratively the film doesn't fare quite as well. This is a stagnant, talky film that inches forward in a way that could raise tension. After all, the film is set during the Battle of Dunkirk, where British soldiers were pushed to the literal brink by German troops, closing in on them on the beach.
We see little of that action, though. And that's okay, especially since Christopher Nolan's epic film chronicling that battle came out this past year. However, what replaces it here are politicians, the great men of history, squabbling over politics and acceptance while the people wonder whether their husbands, sons, brothers, and friends will make it home alive.
The film's high point comes in a moment that may or may not have happened in real life (but my thought is the latter), where Churchill ventures out into the public, hitting the subway and mingling with the common folk to see what they thought. It provides him just the right amount of levity when he needed it the most.
In essence, if "Dunkirk" is a film of action, "Darkest Hour" is a film of discourse, much of it agonizing and frustrating. Especially in today's political climate, much of the action comes off not so much as getting stuff done, but in puffed-up old men blustering about, believing they are accomplishing something while the men doing the real work are giving their lives in service of this debate.
"Darkest Hour" is a showcase film, meant to contend for awards-season prizes. It may or may not succeed in that effort, and Oldman is not the only luminary to play the legendary Prime Minister even this year. But his work is impeccable, and that alone is reason enough to take a look at this film.