It’s widely considered one of the best war movies released in recent years, with 10 Oscar nominations to its name and a cast jam-packed with A-listers.
And now, 1917 is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video, so you can see what all the hype was about.
Released in 2019, the Sam Mendes-directed British war movie stars Andrew Scott, Colin Firth, Benedict Cumberbatch, Richard Madden, and George MacKay.
Set during World War I, it tells the story of two soldiers, Lance Cpl. Schofield (MacKay) and Lance Cpl. Blake (Madden), who are assigned a race against time to deliver a message to another battalion that will stop 1,600 men from walking straight into a deadly ambush.
It’s a seemingly impossible order as they attempt to cross enemy territory and save lives – including that of Blake’s own brother.
With a $90-100million (£67-74m) budget, 1917 was ambitious from the off, as long takes were used to have the entire film appear as two continuous shots where the audience would not see cuts.
And it certainly paid off, grossing over $446m (£331m) worldwide and earning high praise for its technical achievements, stunning visuals, and immersive experience.
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 1917 boasts an impressive 88% from both audiences and critics.
Among the reviews, Wenlei Ma of News.com.au declares it ‘an immersive, visceral and meticulously crafted film that has the emotional stakes to match’, while Sara Michelle Fetters of MovieFreak.com ‘couldn’t take [her] eyes off the screen’.
‘It’s a tense, unnerving ride that accomplishes its goal of translating the first-person experience of war better than any war movies that have come before it. It’s a level up,’ praises Adam Graham of Detroit News.
Cath Clarke of The Big Issue calls it ‘tremendously moving’, and Max Weiss of Baltimore Magazine says the action is ‘swift and heart-pounding’.
As for the viewing public, @mefstration boldly declares it a ‘cinematic masterpiece’ and @Tomato547 says 1917 has ‘absolutely no downsides’.
@Rycordes1 says it is ‘one of the best war movies of all time’, while @Rwhobbs198 writes: ‘1917 is a cinematic masterpiece that will leave you breathless.’
In total, 1917 received 163 award nominations, winning 72 of them and with particular praise for direction, cinematography, sound, score, and visuals.
It won three Oscars for best cinematography, best sound mixing, and best visual effects, and won seven Baftas, including best film and best direction.
After three noms, it won two Golden Globes, with Mendes honoured for outstanding directing at the 72nd Directors Guild of America Awards.
Speaking previously about his inspiration for making the film, Mendes, 60, revealed that he had grown up hearing stories from the battlefield from his grandfather, who served as a messenger on the Western Front.
As a result, 1917 drew upon those personal accounts passed down to Mendes, plus tales from those who witnessed the conflict.
‘I made the movie in a way that wants the audience to feel like it happened yesterday,’ he told IWM.
‘It’s a contemporary film. It’s made with all the contemporary bells and whistles of a big movie and obviously I hope this somehow enriches people’s understanding of what these men went through, because it was extraordinary and terrible.’
Amid the film’s storming awards season success in January 2020, Mendes further admitted to Sky News that the filming method to make the final product appear seamless was ‘stressful’ and that ‘pretty much every day at some point’, he was left thinking: ‘Why have I done this myself?’
‘It would be so much easier to make this in a conventional way, you know?’, he mused. ‘[But] when you get the shot and these are long, long takes, it’s so exhilarating and so exciting that you want to do it again.’
Mendes has enjoyed a highly successful career, starting as he meant to go on with American Beauty (1999). The directorial debut won him a best director Oscar and Golden Globe.
His other work includes the James Bond films Skyfall (2012) and Spectre (2015), and, most recently, he produced the 2025 adaptation of Hamnet.
1917 is now available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
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