Darkest Hour (5 Stars)

Despite praises heaped on this film by my friends in England I thought I might not like it. A film about Winston Churchill fighting the war against Germany sounded like a retelling of a story that's been filmed over and over again. As I soon found out, I went into the film with the wrong expectations. "Darkest Hour" is a story that's never been told before. It's not about fighting the Germans, it's about Winston Churchill's fight against his rivals in the British parliament.

The film covers a relatively brief period of time, from May 9th until June 4th 1940. That's the time he needed to win his battle and conquer parliament. A digital calendar keeps track of the date, telling us what happened when, but it's not used in the final scene, his legendary speech in parliament, giving the impression that it took place before the Battle of Dunkirk. It actually took place immediately afterwards.

The speech was about ten times as long as the extract shown in the film. The first part of the speech was a summary of the battles against Germany so far. The second part of the speech is a call to war against Germany to protect the British Isles. This is one of the most famous speeches ever made, so I'll quote it here.

"Turning once again, and this time more generally, to the question of invasion, I would observe that there has never been a period in all these long centuries of which we boast when an absolute guarantee against invasion, still less against serious raids, could have been given to our people.

"I have, myself, full confidence that if all do their duty, if nothing is neglected, and if the best arrangements are made, as they are being made, we shall prove ourselves once again able to defend our Island home, to ride out the storm of war, and to outlive the menace of tyranny, if necessary for years, if necessary alone. At any rate, that is what we are going to try to do. That is the resolve of His Majesty’s Government; every man of them. That is the will of Parliament and the nation. The British Empire and the French Republic, linked together in their cause and in their need, will defend to the death their native soil, aiding each other like good comrades to the utmost of their strength.

"Even though large tracts of Europe and many old and famous States have fallen or may fall into the grip of the Gestapo and all the odious apparatus of Nazi rule, we shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end, 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, and even if, which I do not for a moment believe, this Island or a large part of it were subjugated and starving, then our Empire beyond the seas, armed and guarded by the British Fleet, would carry on the struggle, until, in God’s good time, the New World, with all its power and might, steps forth to the rescue and the liberation of the old".