British troops line up on the beach at Dunkirk to await evacuation. NYP 68075 Part of
AMERICAN (US) EMBASSY SECOND WORLD WAR PHOTOGRAPH LIBRARY: CLASSIFIED PRINT COLLECTION

Hi everyone, young, female military historian here. With Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster WWII film Dunkirk taking the world by storm this summer, the upsurge in attention to this important event in our history has been fascinating to observe and engage with. Almost immediately after it hit theaters, we began seeing interviews with veterans who were emotionally moved after seeing their personal memories reflected onscreen, and stories about lesser-known but considerably harrowing Dunkirk experiences are coming to light every day. One article in particular has caused a bit of a stir, and I wanted to weigh in this week on my reactions.

If you haven’t seen the Marie Claire review of Dunkirk yet, I’d recommend giving it a read here first: http://www.marieclaire.com/celebrity/news/a28515/dunkirk-movie-review/. Anyone who has been on Twitter lately has probably seen some of the heated discussions this post has prompted, and I find myself concerned both as a historian and on a personal level.

Right off the bat, I was taken aback by the snide tone author Mehera Bonner used to describe the type of people (read: socially awkward men) who would find Dunkirk to be a spectacular cinematic experience, describing the film as Nolan’s “directorial gift to men.” This automatically assumes that there is nothing about its stylistic elements that would in any way appeal to women, which I think is both ridiculous and degrading. First of all, I struggle to comprehend how scenes of combat and “non-stop violent intensity,” which Bonner rightly acknowledges were intended to immerse moviegoers in an experience authentic to what actually happened, are gender-specific in any way. In fact, I consciously noted that Nolan strategically played upon human fears in general throughout the film, such as being trapped in small spaces and drowning. Regardless, while women in uniform were not part of the troops being evacuated from the beaches, in 2017 they face conditions like those seen in the film every single day as proof that combat is no longer an exclusively masculine sphere. This is where we see a disparity between modern and 1940 realities and sensibilities, and it is important not to conflate the two in critique of a situation that has since changed considerably.

Further, I interpret Bonner’s argument here as suggesting that female audience members require softer storylines that involve us more closely in the characters. One of the most significant features of Dunkirk is its unique portrayal of the events from a wide perspective that allows for an appreciation of their scale. There are no love stories or token combat nurses-turned girlfriends as we’ve seen time and again with movies like Passchendaele, Pearl Harbour, and Flyboys, the butt of many historians’ jokes and by no means notable romances, either. Dunkirk is distinctly void of these superficial storylines, even despite its inclusion of pop star Harry Styles, and is instead concerned with telling a very real story through highly immersive and believable means.

Bonner goes on to exemplify the type of personality that she claims the film caters to, and actually has the gall to write the words: “I understand that this war was dominated by brave male soldiers. I get that. But…” The way I see it, there is no room for ‘but’ here. Bonner’s whiny, ill-founded attempt at a cheeky clapback represents a remarkably insensitive and uninformed perspective of modern history. Regardless of who you are and where you come from, the events at Dunkirk had a profound impact on the course of the Second World War and thus the direction of world history barely two generations ago. We are incredibly fortunate today to be unable to fathom living through such dramatic and frightening times, but it is our responsibility to be reflective and not ignorant; to appreciate those trials in all of their complexities whether or not they are completely in line with how we would interpret them today. If you’re looking for an enjoyable and entertaining experience, you won’t find it in Dunkirk, just as the soldiers didn’t on that very real and fateful beach. Lest we forget.