I Only Saw Dunkirk Because of Harry Styles, and Here's Why It's Not a F*cking Problem

My favorite movie is Titanic. My second favorite movie is Pirates of the Caribbean (the first one; the rest are garbage). Nowhere on my list of favorite movies would I find something super serious or about a war, or one that doesn't involve romance in some way. I tend to not like violence in general. (The "violence" in Pirates is laughable at best.) I don't like movies that make me think, but what I do like is Harry Styles. So when he was cast in Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk, I had a real dilemma on my hands.

Dunkirk is a movie about World War II and involves the British soldiers who were trapped in Dunkirk, France, and trying desperately to get home. Literally nothing about this movie sounded appealing to me, aside from the Harry factor and the fact that I know Nolan is a cinematic genius. I knew that I would inevitably see this movie because of Harry, because my life revolves around whatever he and Louis Tomlinson do, so I made a point of trying to educate myself on the real Dunkirk evacuation.

I was not alone in this mission. Scores of Harry's fans really made an effort to know this world history so we could go watch this movie as educated people and really absorb the story. If there's one thing I can say about Harry's fans, it's that they're dedicated to not just Harry but all of Harry's work. I didn't love my history lesson, I won't lie, but it felt important to be knowledgeable even though I, once again, didn't want to see a damn war movie.

On one hand, I was criticized for saying I was going to see a movie just because Harry was in it, but what more reason did I need? I was criticized for saying I don't like war movies and only like "girlie stuff." It has nothing to do with my gender and everything to do with wanting to let go and enjoy myself while watching a movie. Do you mean to tell me no man has ever watched a movie because an attractive woman was starring in it? Hey, whatever floats your boat is OK with me.

On the other hand, I have had to deal with people saying they won't see the movie because Harry is in it. Now, that one I don't understand. Once again, do what you want, that's your prerogative, but to write off a movie that's sure to be a blockbuster because a "former boy band member" (someone else's words, not mine) is in it is just dumb, sorry not sorry. Nolan knows what he's doing when it comes to movies. He has absolutely no need to cast someone like Harry as a gimmick. Harry had to earn his role just like everyone else, and frankly, that made me want to see the movie more, because I was intrigued by his apparent mystery acting talent.

The moral of my story is you should do things for whatever reason makes you happy. If you want to go to a movie because you only like one person in it, do it. If you want to go to a movie because you just have a hankering for movie theater popcorn, you should do that too. If you want to go to a concert because you like literally just one song from a band, you should still go. Because even if it's a weird reason that no one else agrees with, it's making you happy. How happy do you think it made me to see Harry's face in IMAX? Let me tell you, it made me really happy. Did I also experience a cinematic masterpiece that I would most definitely not have gone to see otherwise? Yes, and that was a nice bonus.