“Those who do not know history are destined to repeat it.” This quote, that I constantly heard in my sophomore history class, was a main reason why I went to go see the film Dunkirk.

  After recently learning about the events at Dunkirk, I was very excited to see how this historic evacuation would be adapted on screen.

  Directed by Christopher Nolan, the movie is a nonlinear, thought provoking story about what happened when French and English troops were stranded at Dunkirk in northern France.   

 My first thought as I walked into the theater was how a history movie could keep me entertained for two hours, but when the credits rolled, I had been proven wrong.   

 Dunkirk kept me on the edge of my seat throughout the whole film.    

 The first scene depicts English troops escaping gunfire in the town of Dunkirk and making their way to safety on the beach.     

 Shortly after this scene, Nolan introduces the three different storylines of movie and their time frames: the mole, the sea, and the air.   

The mole, a french soldier, is a story that takes place over a week leading up to the evacuation. It is about a young british soldier trying to get off Dunkirk beach in order to survive.  This aspect of the film exemplifies all of the difficult conditions soldiers were exposed to during World War II.  

The sea is a story about a father, son and their worker, who are taking life vests to the soldiers stranded at Dunkirk. This takes place during the day of the evacuation.      

The air depicts three English pilots who are trying to stop the German planes from bombing English ships and territories. This story takes place in the hour leading up to the evacuation at Dunkirk.

This nonlinear time frame kept me engaged throughout the whole movie because I was constantly wondering how they would all tie together.  

Towards the end of the movie, the three stories begin to overlap, which clears up any unanswered questions.

The cast was wonderful as well. Although some cast members made their debut in the film, it was hard to tell due to their incredible performances.

The audience really feels for the protagonists because the movie immerses you in the horrors of war.

Even though Dunkirk is a thought provoking history movie, it has a sentimental side as well.

There were many scenes where I was drawn to tears by heroic actions, as well as devastating plot twists in the story lines.   

This movie does an outstanding job  showing how difficult the war was on the soldiers, as well as those surrounding them.  

Dunkirk shows how selfless the heroes of World War II were and gives outstanding examples of leadership.

I would highly recommend going to go see this movie if you would like to learn more about World War II, challenge your mind, or simply to feel the thrill of a suspenseful movie.