Entertainment
The Tom Hardy Action Epic That Will Make Your Heart Race
If you’re looking for excitement, this Tom Hardy movie is the right film to stream.
By Robert Scucci
| Published
These days, Tom Hardy is most well known for his portrayal of Eddie Bock, and his symbiote-suited alter-ego, Venom. Science-fiction superhero flicks aside, it’s worth noting that Hardy also starred in 2017’s Dunkirk, written and directed by Christopher Nolan, and is considered to be one of the greatest war films of all time. Dunkirk is celebrated for its extensive use of practical effects, excellent sound design, film scoring, editing, and cinematography.
The Movie Is Louder Than The Battle That Inspired It
The World War II film is set in 1940, and it depicts the evacuation of over 300,000 men during the Battle of Dunkirk. Though this Tom Hardy film has received high praise from actual Dunkirk veterans, there were of course some creative liberties taken by Christopher Nolan to translate the historical events into a cohesive piece of cinema.
One such liberty was the overall intensity of the movie, which Kenneth Branagh (Commander Bolton) reported that some veterans suggested the movie was “louder than the battle.”
Writing 101: Showing Without Telling
One difference between Dunkirk and its contemporaries is the film’s sparse use of dialogue. Christopher Nolan truly wanted to focus on the intensity of the evacuation and drew inspiration from silent movies like Erich von Stroheim’s Greed, D.W. Griffith’s Intolerance: Love’s Struggle Throughout the Ages, and F.W. Murnau’s Sunrise.
If you’re looking for some great Tom Hardy one-liners, you won’t find them in Dunkirk, but you won’t feel cheated after you see the scope of the action sequences either.
Tom Hardy only has about 10 lines of dialogue in Dunkirk. What’s presented instead is such a visceral depiction of war that it quickly becomes apparent why Christopher Nolan decided to write a screenplay that was only 76 pages long. Nolan has gone on record stating that he didn’t want to go into the war-room politics or detailed character backstories because he felt that these story-telling mechanisms would take away from the singular moment in history he was trying to capture.
Dunkirk received universal acclaim upon its release and currently boasts a 92 percent critical score.
When you consider the thousands of extras that were employed Dunkirk’s production, as well as the use of historical boats and spitfire planes that were used to produce this war epic, it’s clear that Christopher Nolan wanted to make a film that had a sense of urgency.
By Land, Sea, And Air
To add to this notion of immediacy, Dunkirk is told from three perspectives: land, sea, and air. And it’s evident that Tom Hardy was up for the task with his portrayal of his Farrier character, who says very little, but carries the story through his brave and selfless actions as he assists in the evacuation, not knowing whether he’ll be able to fly back to England safely or crash-land.
A common storytelling mechanism in war films is the use of the composite character, and Hardy’s character gets this treatment. Though Farrier is not directly based on an actual pilot, inspiration was drawn from the real-life evacuation.
Sources indicate that Farrier’s experience closely mirrors the story of Alan Christopher “Al” Deere, a New Zealand Spitfire pilot who had a similar crash landing, and it’s likely that Hardy’s character was based on a few soldiers that actually existed rather than just one person.
What’s most impressive about Dunkirk is its relatively short run-time of 106 minutes. When you think about the multiple point-of-view treatment that the film encapsulates, it’s safe to say that not a single minute of run-time is wasted thanks Dunkirk’s visual storytelling.
Dunkirk Has Incredible Sound Design
If the promise of stunning visuals and action sequences isn’t enough for you, then the film score for Dunkirk will surely keep you at the edge of your seat. Hans Zimmer penned the score and leaned heavily into the use of Risset rhythms, which are used to create the illusion of an ever-increasing tempo, which naturally adds a healthy amount of suspense to the more tense scenes.
Zimmer also sampled and synthesized Christopher Nolan’s pocket watch, which could be subtly heard when Tom Hardy’s Farrier is trying to assess how much fuel he has left in his plane before attempting a landing.
A Critically Acclaimed Cinematic Masterpiece
Dunkirk received universal acclaim upon its release and currently boasts a 92 percent critical score on Rotten Tomatoes. Not only are Tom Hardy, Fionn Whitehead, Tom Glynn-CaWarney, and Aneurin Barnard praised for their collective ability to convey emotion through the use of very little dialogue, the film itself is praised for its overall intensity and gripping cinematography. What’s more, Dunkirk raked in $527 million at the box office, making it the highest-grossing World War II film to date.
Though Tom Hardy didn’t take home any Academy Awards for his performance in Dunkirk, the film was nominated for eight, taking home three for Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Film Editing. If you want to see Dunkirk in all of its glory, it can be rented or purchased on demand through Amazon Prime Video, Fandango at Home, YouTube, and Apple TV+.
Entertainment
Attention Apple fans: The brand new M5 MacBook Air already has its first discount
SAVE $49: As of March 12, the brand new Apple MacBook Air (M5, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) is on sale for the first time in both the 13-inch and 15-inch models. Get the 13-inch for $1,049.99 (reg. $1,099) and the 15-inch for $1,249.99 (reg. $1,299).
$1,049.99
at Amazon
$1,099
Save $49.01
$1,249.99
at Amazon
$1,299
Save $49.01
The brand new Apple M5 MacBook Air officially has its first discount. It made its formal debut just yesterday, March 11, and is already on sale in both the 13-inch and 15-inch varieties.
The starting price for the M5 MacBook Air is $1,099 for the 13-inch model and $1,299 for the 15-inch model. Both base models feature 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. As of March 12, you can knock $49.01 off each laptop, bringing the starting price down to just $1,049.99 or $1,249.99. Sure, that’s not a huge discount. But considering the base models are already technically $100 cheaper than their predecessors, that’s pretty sweet value.
Mashable Deals
So what’s new about these laptops? Honestly, not a whole lot. Obviously, the M5 chip is a step up from the previous generation’s M4 chip. They now have the same wildly fast processor as the 14-inch MacBook Pro from last fall. They also start with more base storage, are configurable with up to 4TB (up from 2TB) for the first time, and have added Apple’s N1 wireless chip to bring support for WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 6.
Mashable Deals
Otherwise, the new M5 MacBook Air is largely the same as the M4 MacBook Air — same 60Hz Liquid Retina display, 12MP Center Stage webcam, dual Thunderbolt 4 ports, and 18-hour battery life. While that’s not necessarily a bad thing (we loved the M4 Air), it certainly makes it a non-essential upgrade unless you’re rocking a MacBook that’s a few generations old. Still, there’s no denying what a great value the laptop is, particularly now that it’s $49 cheaper in both sizes.
Entertainment
Stay prepared for anything with the Growatt Helios power station — now $400 off at Amazon
SAVE $400: As of March 12, get the Growatt Helios portable power station for just $1,199. That’s $400 off the power station’s $1,599 list price.
$1,199
at Amazon
$1,599
Save $400
Portable power stations are essential devices whether you spend most of your time indoors or outside. Not only can it serve as a back-up power source in the case of an emergency power outage, but it can also accompany you on all your adventures. If you’re headed out on a camping or RV trip this summer, a power station might just be the companion you need for keeping your devices charged.
If you’re looking for a great power station, let us steer you in the direction of the Growatt Helios portable power station. As of March 12, it’s on sale at Amazon, saving you $400 on its $1,599 list price. That brings it down to $1,199 for 25% off. It’s not quite the power station’s lowest-ever price of $1,099, but it’s close.
Mashable Deals
The Growatt Helios portable power station with 3,600W output and 3.6kWh. Let us translate that. It can power heavy duty devices including air conditioners and refrigerators. When fully charged, the Growatt Helios generator can power your fridge for 24 to 72 hours. It supports USB, DC, and AC power so you can charge multiple devices at once. Plus, you can power it up fast with solar.
Mashable Deals
Get the Growatt Helios Portable Power Station at Amazon for $1,199.
Entertainment
Stephen King's Forgotten R-Rated 80s Hit Led By Star Trek's Most Evil Seductress
By Jonathan Klotz
| Published
There’s been a lot of Stephen King adaptations over the years. In the early 90s, King decided to write a story as a screenplay first, and the result was the insane Sleepwalkers, about a mother and son pair of vampiric werecats terrorizing a small town in Indiana.
It’s one of those films that has to be seen to be believed, especially for a pre-Borg Queen performance by Star Trek: First Contact’s Alice Krige as one of the sleepwalkers. The 1992 horror film recently arrived on Netflix, making it even easier to play “spot the famous horror director” from among the many cameos jammed into the brisk, 89-minute runtime.
Don’t Think Too Hard About Sleepwalkers
Stephen King has been very upfront about the copious amounts of drugs he consumed during the 70s and 80s, particularly cocaine, which helps explain Sleepwalkers’ plot. Alice Krige is Mary, the mother of Charles (Charmed’s Brian Krause), and the two happen to be energy-draining werecats who feed off the energy of female virgins. Tanya (Twin Peak’s Madchen Amick) is targeted by the two after Charles fakes his way into the local high school, but the elaborate plan, which consists of make out in a cemetery, is thwarted when Tanya fights back using a corkscrew.
The two sleepwalkers may be powerful night creatures, but they have one weakness, and it just so happens that Tanya’s bonded with one of the beings who can easily kill them in a fight: Clovis the housecat. Sleepwalkers is very simple in its storytelling, and absolutely insane with its bizarre face-morphing CGI (at the time, it was cutting edge), cats flying in off the side of the screen, cars blowing up with a single bullet, and an “interesting” mother-son relationship.
Sleepwalkers Was A Surprise Box Office Hit
Alice Krige manages to again be off-putting, terrifying, and charming at the same time, similar to her later performance as the Borg Queen, the original “hear me out” meme of the 90s. Her performance helped propel the off-kilter feature to top the box office the weekend it debuted on the way to earning $30 million, unadjusted for inflation, that still tops the 2025 box office for horror films Him and The Woman In The Yard.
One of the fun parts of Sleepwalkers comes from director Mick Garris’ mission to include as many horror directors as possible, leading to cameos from Stephen King himself, John Landis (An American Werewolf in London), Tobe Hooper (Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Clive Barker (Hellraiser, Scream), and Joe Dante (Gremlins). Mark Hamill and Ron Perlman also pop in for brief appearances.
Sleepwalkers was savaged by critics and still only has a 29 percent rotten rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with an equally low audience rating of 32 percent. Those people clearly don’t know how to have fun. King’s story may have, allegedly, been drug-induced, but it’s so weird and off the wall that the film is a blast. While it’s special effects aged like milk, Krause and Krig managed to create some great scares, and in an era of bloated runtimes, 89 minutes makes it feel like it’s ending as soon as it gets going.
Sleepwalkers is now available to stream on Netflix, and we suggest you sit down with your cat to watch it.
Attention Apple fans: The brand new M5 MacBook Air already has its first discount
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