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Darkest Hour (film)

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This article is about the 2017 political drama film. For the 2011 science fiction film, see The Darkest Hour (film).
Darkest Hour
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJoe Wright
Written byAnthony McCarten
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyBruno Delbonnel
Edited byValerio Bonelli
Music byDario Marianelli
Production
companies
Distributed byFocus Features
Release dates
  • 1 September 2017 (2017-09-01) (Telluride)
  • 22 November 2017 (2017-11-22)
Running time
125 minutes[1]
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Darkest Hour is a 2017 British war drama film directed by Joe Wright and written by Anthony McCarten. The film stars Gary Oldman as Winston Churchill, and follows his early days as Prime Minister as Hitler closes in on Britain in World War II (The Darkest Hour). Ben Mendelsohn, Kristin Scott Thomas, Lily James, Stephen Dillane, and Ronald Pickup also star.

It had its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival on 1 September 2017,[2] and also screened on 11 September 2017 at the Toronto International Film Festival.[3] The film will be released on 22 November 2017 in the United States and 29 December 2017 in the United Kingdom.[4]

Plot

Winston Churchill (Gary Oldman) faces a crucial moment against Adolf Hitler's army in the beginning of the Second World War.

Cast

Production

On 5 February 2015 it was announced that Working Title Films had acquired Darkest Hour, a spec script by The Theory of Everything screenwriter Anthony McCarten about Winston Churchill in the early days of World War II.[5]

On 19 March 2016 it was reported that Joe Wright was in talks to direct the film.[6] As of 14 April 2016 Gary Oldman was in talks to play Churchill.[7]

On 6 September 2016 it was reported that Focus Features would release the film in the United States on 24 November 2017, with Ben Mendelsohn (as King George VI) and Kristin Scott Thomas (as Clementine Churchill).[4]

As of 3 November 2016 Darkest Hour had begun principal photography.[8] Also in November, it was reported that Dario Marianelli would score the film.[9]

On 8 November 2016, Stephen Dillane joined the cast.[10] For his role as Churchill, Oldman spent over 200 hours getting make-up applied during the course of filming.[11]

John Hurt was initially cast as former British prime minister Neville Chamberlain. However, according to Oldman, Hurt was undergoing treatment for pancreatic cancer, and was unable to attend the read-throughs. He died on 25 January 2017. Actor Ronald Pickup assumed the role of Chamberlain instead.[12]

Reception

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 79% based on 28 reviews, with an average rating of 7.1/10.[13] On Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating based on reviews, the film has an average score of 72 out of 100, based on 9 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[14]

Gary Oldman has received critical acclaim for his performance, with numerous reviewers labelling him a frontrunner to win the Academy Award for Best Actor.[15] Gregory Ellwood of The Playlist praised Oldman, saying: "Few would argue that Oldman isn't one of the finest actors of his generation, but this is a tour de force portrayal that will define his body of work for decades to come. And when you take account those countless portrayals [of Churchill] over the years this makes the film and Oldman's performance something extraordinary."[16] David Elrich of IndieWire gave the film a "B+" and praised Wright's direction and the musical score, writing: "Unfolding with the clockwork precision of a Broadway play — director Joe Wright has always been at his best when he’s at his most theatrical — this tightly coiled retelling of Churchill’s first days in office is more than (yet another) passionate appeal to our collective goodness; it’s a deliciously unsubtle testament to the power of words and their infinite capacity to inspire."[17]

References

  1. ^ "Darkest Hour". tiff. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
  2. ^ Hammond, Pete (31 August 2017). "'Darkest Hour', 'Battle of the Sexes', 'Lady Bird' Among World Premieres in 2017 Lineup – Telluride Film Festival". Deadline.com. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
  3. ^ "Toronto Film Festival 2017 Unveils Strong Slate". Deadline. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  4. ^ a b McNary, Dave (6 September 2016). "Gary Oldman's Winston Churchill Film 'Darkest Hour' Gets Release Date, Rounds Out Cast". Variety. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  5. ^ Fleming, Jr., Mike (5 February 2015). "'Theory of Everything's Anthony McCarten & Working Title Set Winston Churchill WWII Epic". Deadline.com. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  6. ^ Jaafar, Ali (29 March 2016). "Joe Wright in Talks To Direct Winston Churchill Pic For Working Title". Deadline. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  7. ^ McNary, Dave (14 April 2016). "Gary Oldman in Talks to Play Winston Churchill in 'Darkest Hour'". Variety. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  8. ^ Raup, Jordan (3 November 2016). "First Look: Gary Oldman Thoroughly Transforms into Winston Churchill in 'Darkest Hour'". The Film Stage. Retrieved 4 November 2016.
  9. ^ "Dario Marianelli to Score Joe Wright's 'Darkest Hour'". Retrieved 15 May 2017.
  10. ^ Lodderhose, Diana (8 November 2016). "Stephen Dillane Joins Working Title's Churchill WWII Epic 'Darkest Hour' As Production Begins in UK". Deadline. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  11. ^ "Gary Oldman Spent 200 Hours in Make-Up Chair To Become Winston Churchill In 'Darkest Hour'". Deadline. 29 March 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2017.
  12. ^ "John Hurt won't appear in Darkest Hour, what was thought to be his final film". Digital Spy. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2017.
  13. ^ "Darkest Hour (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  14. ^ "Darkest Hour reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  15. ^ Nolfi, Joey (2 September 2017). "Darkest Hour reviews hail Gary Oldman as Oscar frontrunner". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
  16. ^ "'Darkest Hour': Gary Oldman Is Simply A Force of Nature As Winston Churchill [Telluride Review]". The Playlist. 2 September 2017. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  17. ^ Ehrlich, David (2 September 2017). "'Darkest Hour' Review: Gary Oldman Makes Joe Wright's Biopic as Rousing and Ferocious as Winston Churchill Was Himself". IndieWire. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
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