1917

To say that 1917 reinvents the war movie may be somewhat of a stretch, but its creative approach to a frequently tired genre injects so much life and wonder onscreen that the cumulative results feel like something wholly new.

As Sam Mendes directs Roger Deakins’ camera through impossibly long, tactile trenches of WWI France, ratcheting up the tension through rising stakes and a seemingly edit-free single shot, the film delivers familiar horrors of combat, elevated by the scenario’s ticking clock.

Indeed, Lance Corporals Blake (Dean-Charles Chapman, Tommen Baratheon from Game of Thrones) and Schofield (George MacKay, Captain Fantastic) have precious few hours to cross (allegedly) recently-deserted enemy territory, warn a motivated colonel of pending ambush, and save the lives of thousands of soldiers — among them Blake’s big brother.

The personal investment adds a compelling wrinkle of both superhuman motivation and clouded judgment to Blake’s actions, one that Schofield senses from the start and voices his opposition toward, yet soon does his best to stifle as he obeys their orders. These moments allow the duo to strongly express complex emotions in an already difficult situation, but quickly become pawns — albeit supremely sympathetic ones — in the service of the film’s escalating action and spectacle.

Like Birdman and Rope before it, the “cheat” cuts in 1917 are easy to spot, but the act of looking for them amidst the soldiers’ trek across torched farmland and sniper-filled, bombed-out towns, and simultaneously taking in the endeavor’s overall technical marvel yields a sense of awe rarely achieved in film. Similarly, current horror filmmakers would be wise to study Mendes’ set-up and execution of deadly twists — each more dreadful and memorable than any jump scare.

And yet amidst the hellish landscape, the film’s focus on the importance of saving lives remains at the forefront. Consistent with WWI being fought largely by young unknowns, 1917 nicely focuses on MacKay and Chapman, leaving the cast’s more famous names — Benedict Cumberbatch, Colin Firth, Mark Strong, and Andrew Scott — for critical but near cameo appearances as ranking officers who steer the young soldiers’ journey.

That the entire thing would benefit from subtitles to clear up the thick British accents is another matter, but this’ll do for now.

Grade: A-minus. Rated R. Now playing at Biltmore Grande and Carolina Cinemark

(Photo: Warner Bros.)