Sam Mendes' World War I drama '1917' is finally out in UK today

Sam Mendes' first World War drama, 1917 is finally out in the United Kingdom cinemas after a much-anticipated wait. The movie has already won the Golden Globes for Best Film and that explains the buzz around the movie. The movie is being hailed as the best war film since Steven Spielberg's much-acclaimed Saving Private Ryan, which was released in 1998.

The movie was first premiered in the United States on December 25, 2019. It received critical acclaim for direction, musical score, sound effects, and cinematography. 

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UK release of 1917

The film is based in part on an account told to Mendes by his grandfather, Alfred Mendes. The film is set in 1917 in northern France where two young British soldiers, Schofield and Blake are given a seemingly impossible task of delivering a message to another British battalion of 1,600 men, which includes Blake's own brother. 

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A scene from the movie was filmed in one continuous shot to create a kind of theatrical effect. The Skyfall and Spectre director teamed up with visionary cinematographer Roger Deakin to deliver his latest masterpiece. The single-take scene in concern is when Schofield and Blake travel through a post-apocalyptic landscape as they navigate their way through dead bodies, rats, broken tree stumps and mud lakes left by shell craters only to discover German trenches. 

Read: Sam Mendes' Oscar-tipped 1917 Was Filmed In One Continuous Single Take

Mendes and Roger began filming on April 1, 2019 and continued through June 2019 in Wiltshire, Hankley Common, and Govan, Scotland, as well as Shepperton Studios. The film stars George MacKay, Dean-Charles Chapman, Mark Strong, Andrew Scott, Richard Madden, Claire Duburcq, with Colin Firth, and Benedict Cumberbatch. The World War I drama that emerged as the surprise winner of the 77th Golden Globes for the best film also won the best director award. Mendes defeated Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino to win the award at the Golden Globes. 

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(with inputs from agencies)