2017 will not only feature the latest additions to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the next installment in the Star Wars saga, it will also give audiences the latest film from writer and director Christopher Nolan. Releasing almost three years after Interstellar, Nolan is set to return to the big screen with Dunkirk, a World War II epic he also co-wrote with his brother and frequent collaborator, Jonathan Nolan. The movie will also reteam the filmmaker with several of his usual actors, including Tom Hardy and Cillian Murphy, along with Kenneth Branagh, Mark Rylance, and One Direction member, Harry Styles.

So far, only a brief teaser trailer has been released for the film. Following the recent announcement that, in what is becoming typical Nolan fashion, there would be early screenings of Dunkirk next year in 35mm and 70mm projections, it looks like fans of the director may not have to wait much longer to see brand new footage from the film.

/Film reports that the opening 7-minute prologue of Dunkirk will play before select IMAX screenings of Disney’s upcoming Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. The upcoming Star Wars anthology film will be shown in 70mm film format in 15 IMAX theaters, and considering the blockbuster’s gritty war themes, seems like a perfect fit to play with Dunkirk. There has been no confirmation, however, on if the prologue will be playing before all digital IMAX screenings of Rogue One, or just the 70mm film projections.

Nolan has a history of showing IMAX previews of his upcoming projects, with both the opening prologues of The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises playing in front of IMAX presentations in the past. Unlike Rogue One, which wasn’t shot using IMAX cameras but will be presented in that format nonetheless, Nolan filmed Dunkirk using a combination of IMAX 65mm and 65mm large format film cameras, which will make the showings of it in that format next year the most preferred ways to see the film when it’s released.

The film tells the true story of Operation Dynamo, a British evacuation of almost 330,000 allied troops in the French seaport of Dunkirk in May and June of 1940, who at the time were surrounded by Nazi troops closing in on them, and is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated blockbusters of next year’s packed lineup. That’s not much of a surprise, though, since Nolan is one of the few filmmakers working today who is able to bring in large box office numbers and enthusiasm from general audiences for original, non-franchise projects, and Dunkirk doesn’t seem to be showing any signs of changing that trend either.

Source: /Film

  • Star Wars: Rogue One Release Date: 2016-12-16 Dunkirk Release Date: 2017-07-21