James Butterwick

A magnificent spectacle with, regrettably, little basis in reality. For all the visual tricks, the idea of two Tommies rescuing a German pilot from his burning plane, a central pivot of the plot, is utterly absurd. Four years of war had brutalised both sides with compassion virtually non-existent. The scenes in the burning French town reminded me of a bizarre arcade game with the Germans proving, contrary to most historical evidence, the worst shots in world history. Poor old George McKay must have had 57 shots fired in his general direction and came out unscathed. No-one can deny the brilliance of the direction, but the historical inaccuracies make it all too implausible. Sam Mendes makes a number of directorial nods to Kubrick’s Paths of Glory - watch that instead........