War films feature some contrasting self-images

War films dominated the summer film releases, and you could not find two more contrasting examples of the genre than Wolf Warrior II and Dunkirk. In one sense, the only thing that links them is the loose heading of "war" and the theme of evacuation, but both have strong political messages.

Dunkirk is based on the escape of large parts of the British Army from continental Europe after the British and French armies were routed by the forces of Nazi Germany in 1940. Director Christopher Nolan conveys the sense of claustrophobia, doom and desperation felt by the encircled British as they are hemmed in by gray seas and gray skies around the northern French town of Dunkirk.

The film is uncomfortable to watch, and even the soundtrack is unsettling, especially when punctuated by the screech of German dive bombers. The film only lightens at the end, when the scale of the evacuation is revealed and the possibility of a brighter future is suggested. The violence of the film is impersonal, with shots from nowhere and torpedoes from under the sea. Only in the air does the combat seem more personal.