Elizabeth ‘Lee’ Miller (Kate Winslet) was a fashion model turned photographer and photojournalist. In 1939, struggling to establish herself in a male environment, she becomes determined to document the the war for her employers, Vogue magazine.
It is worth bearing through the first 20 minutes or so of Lee. It starts with an elderly Lee apparently telling her story to a journalist, and that sort of bookending trope is very over done. We then move to Lee and her friends pre-war. They are so insufferably pleased with how witty and charming they are, that I immediately hated the lot of them.
Things change though when the action moves forward to wartime and Lee is looking for a way to contribute to the war effort. She finds a loophole to avoid the rule of no women on the front line and is able to join the US troops liberating Europe. Lee gets perilously close to the fighting that is still dragging on and, when she gets further into Germany, she sees the true horrors of the Nazi regime.
In the latter stages, director Ellen Kuras delivers some harrowingly powerful scenes and Winslet is superb in them. In particular one conversation with one of her friends, played by the brilliant Noémie Merlant, is very moving. The other outstanding performance comes from Andrea Riseborough as Lee’s editor.
It is also quite touching when the truth, about who Lee is recalling her war story to, is revealed. Stick with Lee, and you should find this rewarding.
Rating: 8 out of 10