Darkest Hour (2017)

Director: Joe Wright
Stars: Gary Oldman, Lily James, Kristin Scott Thomas
Runtime: 125 minutes

Performances: 8/10
Screenplay: 4/10
Special Effects: N.A.
Costumes/Makeup: 10/10
Editing: 5/10
Cinematography: 8/10
Score/Soundtrack: 5/10

Verdict: "Darkest Hour" tells the story of Winston Churchill's first month as British Prime Minister, in May of the year 1940. The names attached to the project, as well as the topic tackled, heightened my expectations going in. Expectations that, unfortunately, were never met due to a very disappointing script, that was filled with exposition scenes in the first act, and cheese towards the end. Screenwriter Anthony McCarten also makes the weird decision of including a lot of secondary characters (Elizabeth Layton, Neville Chamberlain, Viscount Halifax...) and gives them unnecessary arcs, which, as a result, made the movie drag a lot. The movie was, of course, not all bad. It was visually compelling, with cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel doing perhaps his best work since "Inside Llewyn Davis", back in 2013. Gary Oldman's performance was, as usual, flawless, despite him being under a ton of very convincing makeup. But in the end, if like me you're a history buff interested in the eccentric personality of one of Britain's greatest leaders, I'd recommend staying home and binge-watching the first season of "The Crown" on Netflix.  

Final Grade: 5/10