Catrin’s wordsmith skills land her a job in the Ministry of Information’s film division, where she upgrades propaganda scripts that aim to lift morale and instill pride. Originally tasked with inventing women’s dialogue—dubbed “the slop”—in war-related shorts, she is soon recruited to help flesh out a full-length civilian rescue-mission adventure that unfolds during the Battle of Dunkirk, featuring comely patriotic twin sisters who become boat-commandeering heroes. Instead of toiling in a factory, Catrin is a Rosie the Riveter, wielding a typewriter instead of toting a power tool. She isn’t paid as much as “the chaps” at first, but is soon enough treated as an equal by male colleagues as she regularly saves the day with the perfect plot fix or line adjustment
As for the world outside their offices, it is one of increasing chaos and rubble-filled streets as shrill air-raid sirens, swooping German bombers and earth-shaking explosions are regular occurrences while neighbors, friends and family members can be killed without warning. Not that romance isn’t in the air. Competitive sparks fly between Catrin and cynical fellow scribe Tom (Sam Claflin, tribute Finnick in the “The Hunger Games” franchise, who is given a mature makeover with specs and a ‘stache) as they mutually peck away on their keyboards. The love triangle that “Their Finest” puts forth is definitely not the best part of the story since it is quite clear that Ellis neither supports nor is good enough for Catrin. More amusing is how she and Tom go from rivals to a well-tuned team, complementing one another at work and beyond.
The film crews, both Scherfig’s and her fictional one onscreen, deliver picturesque backdrops on a modest budget. The seaside locales that stand in for Dunkirk offer a scenic oasis from the horrors back home and the peeks into how primitive cinematic effects were achieved are fun to witness. Equally impressive are the outbreaks of violence, such as when a horrified Catrin stumbles upon a bloodied body amid scattered store mannequins as dust obscures the carnage.
The supporting cast is a special effect in and of itself, as various stellar British actors parade by, including Richard E. Grant, Eddie Marsan and Jeremy Irons. But no one fulfills his duty better than that lanky slice of wry known as Bill Nighy, who plays an aging matinee idol making hay as younger thespians are otherwise engaged. As Ambrose Hilliard, the star of a pre-war detective series, Nighy is never less than splendid, whether cozying up to Catrin so she plumps up his self-sacrificing role as drunken Uncle Frank, patiently coaching the real-life Audie Murphy-style American war hero in the cast (Jake Lacy, leadenness personified) used as bait for Yankee ticket buyers or conducting a sentimental group sing-a-long in a pub.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7s7vGnqmempWnwW%2BvzqZmq52mnrK4v46tn56homKzqrrErKtmamBmhA%3D%3D