In 2017, the film "Dunkirk" was directed by Christopher Nolan. The main historical background is the "Dunkirk Retreat" during World War II. From the perspective of ordinary soldiers, the audience is brought into the experience of the British and French forces under the siege of the Germans. Among the cruel incidents, the plot of this film is very close to historical facts. As a war movie, it does not have the cruel scenes of large-scale battles commonly seen in previous war films. The expression is very calm, without deliberate rendering or sensationalism, and the plot is greatly simplified. There are very few lines, but the whole film effect is still very shocking and the aftertaste is long. Among them, editing is indispensable. This article will discuss how the film is edited to create suspense effects when the plot is relatively simple.
Generally speaking, there are several commonly used methods to create suspense. Basically, they use the dislocation of information to create suspense. Letting the audience know more information from the perspective of God than the people in the play is the most common technique, such as the famous "Last Minute Rescue". In this film, a very similar technique appears in the passage where the male protagonist Tommy and Gibson carry a stretcher through the dam and hope to board the ship. When editing, it is basically divided into two parts: two people on the road and boat preparation. The shots basically switch back and forth between the boat and the two. Since the audience knows that the ship is about to depart, they will feel nervous for the two who are still on the way, fearing that they will not arrive on time. At the same time, the journey of the two was not smooth. Various obstacles were set up in front of them. There were very crowded teams, bombs that exploded next to the dam from time to time, and soldiers trying to snatch stretchers, but were blown through. A narrow plank bridge. These obstacles are delaying the action of the protagonist, but the preparation of the ship is smooth sailing, which invisibly makes the goal of the protagonist seem out of reach. Especially when the ship announced its departure in the last shot, six consecutive shots of the two passing through the crowded line were edited, which greatly extended the psychological time for the protagonist to arrive.
When the audience is worried about the protagonist, the editing immediately cuts to the line of the sea. This is another way to create suspense: delay. At the critical moment when the audience is concerned about the plot, editing and switching perspectives delayed the time to answer the suspense. This will arouse stronger curiosity and desire to reveal secrets in the audience. In this film, the most intensive use of delay methods is the cross-editing of sea, land and air. On the land side, everyone hides in the cabin. Not only has there been infighting, but also faces the danger of being shot or discovered by the Germans. On the sea side, Collins, who is forced to land on the sea, is trapped. In the cockpit and the sky, Farrell, whose instrument was broken, encountered an enemy plane. Judging from the situation of the three lines, each is facing a very thrilling situation. During the editing, the ship on land was shot. After explaining that everyone was facing danger, they switched to the sea. Collins was trapped in the cockpit, then switched to the sky, and Farrell encountered an enemy plane. On the land side, seawater flooded into the cabin from the muzzle, and someone was shot. On the sea, Collins tried to open the cabin door to no avail. Basically, the situation would escalate every time it was switched. The situation on land was the most dangerous. Not only was it shot by the Germans and the sea water poured in, but also infighting broke out. This is no longer using unrelated events to delay the suspense, but three lines interacting with each other, using the tension of one line to delay the development of the other line, it can be said to be a relatively advanced delay method, and the audience's attention will be high at this time. Gather together.
The three main lines of the film’s story time is one week for land, one day for ocean and one hour for sky. Through parallel editing, the two lines are crossed, and each clue goes hand in hand, increasing the tension of the story. There are almost no extra shots during editing, and the whole process is very simple and decisive, and there is basically no means such as dissolving. They are all switched directly, which greatly increases the tense and cold temperament of the film.
However, due to the different story times of the film itself, sea, land and air, parallel editing will make it difficult for ordinary audiences to understand. In the whole plot, the editing always cooperates with the soundtrack to create the ultimate tense atmosphere. Relatively speaking, when the plot is relaxed, it is very tiring to watch the movie experience, which is a small regret for the film.
