Journey’s End hits cinemas this week, a World War I-set drama starring the likes of Sam Claflin (Me Before You, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire), Asa Butterfield (The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas), Toby Jones and Paul Bettany (Avengers: Age of Ultron).
This study of the psychological impact of war marks Saul Dibb’s fourth feature following Bullet Boy, Oscar-winning costume drama The Duchess, and Suite Française.
We talked to the director about films that influenced Journey’s End, including Das Boot and, perhaps surprisingly, Ridley Scott’s Alien, as well as what it was like working with the cast, plus how to make a war movie with a difference.
We also take a look back on his film The Duchess, asking what it was like working with Keira Knightley and Ralph Fiennes, and discuss why British cinema always seems to focus on period settings.
