Want to get a taste of Tenet director Christopher Nolan's jaw-dropping back catalogue? Don't want to pay a penny? Then you're in luck, as right now his WW2 epic is available to stream online for free - as are a number of other award-winning movies, from all-time greats like The Godfather to more recent classics like The Revenant. Read on as we explain how to watch Dunkirk online and stream the full movie for free right now.
The secret is UK streaming service BBC iPlayer. The digital platform of the country's national broadcaster is 100% free to watch and is hosting an increasingly impressive selection of free movies to watch online in 2021. Sign-up and registration hassle is kept to a minimum, though note you should possess a valid TV license.
Of course, iPlayer is only accessible if you're located in the UK and have a full TV licence. But Brits temporarily abroad will find that it's possible to watch iPlayer from other countries with the help of one of the best iPlayer VPNs
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How to watch Dunkirk free online - and why you should
Dunkirk is one of the obvious standouts right now. There are a number of great movies to watch free online with the service - more of our top picks are just below - but Nolan's Academy Award-winning war epic might just be our favourite.
That's because of its incredible visual effects and the clever way Nolan imagined cutting-edge filming technology being blended with more traditional techniques. The film used IMAX cameras, sure - but it was the first to deploy them hand-held. And its amazing battleground backdrops weren't the result of CGI wizardry, rather the practical deployment of actual warships, aircraft and some 6,000 extras in France - plus cardboard cut-outs to really hammer home to size of the armies!
First released in 2017, Dunkirk was also notable for being an almost entirely dialogue-free movie, with its impressive ensemble cast headed by relative newcomers Fionn Whitehead, Tom Glynn-Carney and Jack Lowden - in addition to bigger names like Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy and Kenneth Branagh.
As we've said, though, the biggest selling point is that you can watch Dunkirk online for free right now - courtesy of BBC iPlayer. It'll be on the UK-based streaming platform until Monday, January 25 and you'll find it available to stream here.
- Related movies: how to watch Tenet online
- More all-time classics: how to watch Star Wars movies in order
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Best movies to watch free online with BBC iPlayer right now
Assuming you're able to access the BBC streaming service, you're then spoilt for choice when it comes to watching great free movies right now. Here are some more of our favourites currently available on iPlayer, whether you're looking to take in the movie for the first time or simply due a re-watch.
- Frozen
- Spider-Man: Homecoming
- Boss Baby
- The Revenant
- Guardians of the Galaxy
- The Godfather
- Mission: Impossible
- La La Land
Not a bad selection for a service that's completely free to watch in the UK - though you should be in possession of a valid TV license. With a little bit of help, British residents can even watch the service from other countries . Here's how.
How to watch Dunkirk online from outside the country
If you're a UK resident outside of the country for whatever reason right now, then geo-blocking restrictions will stop you from watching free movies online.
Fortunately, there’s a simple solution in the form of a VPN. It's a piece of software that, once downloaded and installed, lets you temporarily relocate your device's IP address to a country of your choosing - in the case of homesick Brits abroad wanting an iPlayer fix, that'd be the UK.
ExpressVPN is our no. 1 rated VPN and the ideal solution for UK residents wanting to watch British streaming services like iPlayer from abroad. It's fast, easy to get up and running (it only takes a couple of minutes), and is compatible with nearly all modern devices including Amazon Fire TV Sticks, Apple TVs, Xbox and PlayStation consoles, Windows and Mac computers, and iOS and Android hardware.
- ExpressVPN tops our best streaming VPN countdown
