World War II movies are a common staple in American cinema, but World War I and its horrifying trenches are far less frequently shown on the big screen. British director Sam Mendes’ “1917” closes that deficit by taking viewers on a riveting journey through those trenches in a powerful new take on the war. 

The story follows two British soldiers, Lance Cpl. Blake (Dean-Charles Chapman) and Lance Cpl. Schofield (George MacKay), tasked with going behind enemy lines to deliver an urgent message to a different regiment that the attack they are about to commence is a trap and to immediately stand down.

The film begins with a brigade of soldiers resting in the barren trenches of France, and the plot quickly advances. Blake and Schofield are ordered to leave the safety of their trenches through no man’s land into a position believed to be abandoned by the Germans. To make matters worse, Blake learns he is chosen for the mission because his brother is one of the soldiers in the regiment set to launch the doomed attack.

Short but dark humorous banter is interspersed between the heavy action scenes, humanizing the soldiers in ways that most war movies do not.”

What we don’t learn directly about Blake and Schofield’s background, we do learn from how they react to the harrowing threats to their lives as they scramble to accomplish their mission. The cinematography creates an intimate, almost claustrophobic picture of trench warfare and the horrors of the open field.

Mendes uses an interesting technique of making the film appear as if it were a single, continuous shot. There are no flashbacks or cuts to other scenes as you follow the soldiers on their mission.

The film can be compared to a first-person shooter video game, immersing the viewer directly into the action and giving a visceral experience of the various explosions, firefights and near-drownings of the two friends, like the viewer is the third soldier on the mission.

While the action is certainly a major component of the film, Mendes doesn’t neglect dialogue. Short but dark humorous banter is interspersed between the heavy action scenes, humanizing the soldiers in ways that most war movies do not and expressing, without becoming preachy, the horrors of war.

With 10 Academy Award nominations and two Golden Globe Awards to its name, “1917” is sure to be remembered for a long time. Mendes has created a deceptively simple yet immersive film about getting the job done, and the film gets its job done as well.

Leo Friedman can be reached at entertainment@collegian.com or on Twitter @leofriedman13.