Skip to main content

1917

Photo by: Tim Bindner Photography

This past weekend my wife and I went on a date.  We saw a great movie and spent some quality time together.

We saw the new movie called 1917.  Wow!  This movie is based on an old story/tale/fable that may have elements of truth but none has been proven.  I am a huge fan of the military, and specifically military movies (Saving Private Ryan, Blackhawk Down, Platoon, Band of Brothers, Saving Chance, etc.).

1917 is based in World War 1 and the story is quite simple, the mission is not.  A soldier is asked to pick someone and carry a message from the General across enemy lines, within a short timeframe to stop an assault on the Germans.  If they do not make it on time, 1600 soldiers will die including his brother.  Think about that when you have to meet a deadline at work.  Seems kind of petty doesn’t it?

First, as the movie evolves with the simple choice of a soldier asked to pick a friend to go with him.  Imagine choosing someone to potentially die on a dangerous and risky mission.  What a choice.  To be fair the soldier didn’t know what his mission was before he chose his friend.

As the story unfolds in a wonderful cinematic way, it appears that the camera work and movie is one long shot from beginning to end.  It is meant to be that way, but in fact, there were perfectly timed edits to allow the actors to rest, with the longest scene being shot in 9 minutes.  The movie won multiple awards for cinematography. You are literally with the main characters from the opening scene until the very last scene.  They are in every scene.  No breaks, no back story, no cut scenes, just following them from the front, side and behind all the way through this 2-hour movie.  As they cross streams, go up and down hills, through mud, on trucks, walking through buildings you are right there with them the whole time.  This is storytelling at it’s finest.

So what did I like love?  First and foremost the look of the film.  Like my favorite recent photograph (see above), this movie had a look that I could describe as a 70’s or 80’s look I am trying to achieve with my own photography.  The colors are muted, very slight grain, and even though much of the movie is in the daylight there is the mood conveyed by overcast days that I enjoy.  Next, the fact that the movie was emotionally powerful to me made me enjoy it.  I am always amazed at how soldiers accept missions and do their best to follow through.  No questions asked.  This is one of those films.  Then like most of my favorite movies in the military genre, this involved a small group of soldiers (2) that you follow throughout the film.  I quickly became invested in the characters and felt a bit of what they felt during the movie.  Great directing does this as well as superb acting.

I highly recommend watching this film, especially in theaters, without distractions.  The blood and gore are very minimal, and the emotions are high. “In wartime, truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies.” – Winston Churchill

Until next time,

Tim

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Love to get your feedback on what you read!

Popular posts from this blog

Nova Scotia - Day 5

Day 5. September 29, 2022. Today would be a bit of a longer day of travel, but we saw sights that surprised me. I guess I now know why Nova Scotia means New Scotland. The morning began as normal, but this time packing up our stuff to head to the next location. We had a Merci chocolate bar, and our receipt was left for us by our host. Our first stop was breakfast. We heard about a place that served breakfast, so we backtracked to Portside Lounge and I had the best pumpkin spice French toast I have ever eaten. Marcie got the same but couldn’t finish her portion, so extra for me. Our first destination was Cape Forchu Light House . It is a lighthouse like no other. The light house sat high on a rocky hill and is at the bottom of Nova Scotia. I remember looking out at sea and thinking that if a boat went straight, it would not hit land until the Bahamas. There was a visitor center (closed) and walking paths around the place. There was even a pole with destination markers on it. Everywhere ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Vedawoo - part 4

Photo by: Tim Bindner We continued our trip with multiple trip to Laramie, Wyoming, visiting an old prison and various restaurants. One trip took to a wonderful spot called Vedawoo. Vedawoo is hard to describe. It sounds simple when I describe it as large and sometimes massive rocks stacked up all over an area, but honestly, that is what it is. Some rocks are the size of basketballs, while others are the size of buildings stretching hundreds of feet in the air. Mark picked us up in the truck and we took the short drive to Larame, then past the town another 20 minutes, where we left the pavement and down a dusty road, the rock formations appeared all around us. The Native Americans named this place Vedawoo which translates to ‘Land of the Earthborn Spirits’. Pulling into one of the parking lots, I was in ah of the pink feldspar, white quartz, black specs and horneblende rocks towering into the sky. This place had a magic about it. We walked, explored, climbed a little and, of course, to...
Post a Comment
Read more

Halloween scare

Photo by: Tim Bindner Saturday morning, I headed out for a short hike at Mt. Saint Francis. My legs were recovering from the previous day’s walk around Cave Hill Cemetery, so I went somewhere close. I made the 4.02 hike, but learned some things along the way. It was still dark when I arrived in the parking lot. My car was the only one there, and I liked the thought of being completely alone. As I walked a familiar route down toward the lake, the 38 degree weather invigorated me. My lungs filled with the cool air and boosted my energy. As I got closer to the lake, I could see steam rising from the lake, and quickly captured this shot above. I again chose color to shoot today, due to the beautiful leaves that provided me with a perfect canvas upon which to shoot. Today I brought my older model Fuji XT-1 camera with my $25 vintage lens. I felt it was appropriate and hoped this older camera and lens would provide me a fresh look to one of my favorite trails. The trails weren’t...
Post a Comment
Read more