A makeshift flotilla of everything from military vessels to fishing boats ferried about 340,000 Allied troops from a French harbor to England in a 1940 operation often dubbed the "Miracle of Dunkirk."
Seventy-seven years later, that story will hit the silver screen, with some star power in front of and behind the camera.
A trailer for "Dunkirk," which is due in theaters July 21, had nearly a quarter-million YouTube views in less than two hours Wednesday. Christopher Nolan, the director of "Inception," "Interstellar" and the Dark Knight (Christian Bale as Batman) trilogy, directed and wrote the film, which reportedly wrapped filming in September.
That report, and most others having to do with the movie, highlights cast member Harry Styles, member of the English boy band One Direction. Older audiences may be more familiar with Styles' co-stars, including Tom Hardy ("The Dark Knight Returns," "The Revenant"), Cillian Murphy ("Inception," "28 Days Later") and Kenneth Branagh.
The movie reportedly is based on true events surrounding the evacuation, in which nearly 200,000 British troops and 140,000 other Allied forces escaped the French beaches for England.
Adolf Hitler ordered advancing German tanks to stop on May 24, 1940, with plans in place for the German air force to prevent any evacuation. He would reverse the order days later, giving the British time to strengthen their defenses and organize a mass withdrawal of forces.
The evacuation ended June 4, by which point the German forces had been ordered to swing south and continue the fight to take over France.
Kevin Lilley is the features editor of Military Times.
