Darkest Hour: Joe Wright chronicles one of the defining moments on the XXth Century with great aplomb; it helps that the story is this involving and stirring, and that the main character is rich, round, flawed but beyond interesting. Gary Oldman gives a great performance: it goes beyond mimicry (which is, nevertheless, very efficient and greatly enhanced by the prosthetic make-up of Kazuhiro Tsuji), with convincing displays of strength and vulnerability, and great emotional read of Churchill’s speeches. The rest of the cast (in particular Ben Mendelsohn) is fine, but not remarkable. The film has a very classic, somber aesthetic (a good fit for a story that doesn’t call for bells and whistles): from Dario Marianelli’s beautiful musical score to the rich Sarah Greenwood’s production design and Bruno Delbonnel’s cinematography.