#TIFF23: “LEE” REVIEW

By: Amanda Gilmore

Kate Winslet delivers another superb performance in this biopic about model-turned war-correspondent Lee Miller.

The Film follows Lee from the start of her photography career in 1938. The Second World War is just beginning and Lee has a desire to be more than a former model. When she moves to London with her partner Roland Penrose (Alexander Skarsgård), the blitz begins and Lee knows she must show the destruction of war. 

She became a Photojournalist for British Vogue, getting to publish her photos that capture the impact of the war in London. However, she’s determined to go to continental Europe as a war correspondent. Thanks to her determination, her renowned photographs show what happened inside concentration camps and on the ground during WWII.

Lee is an inspiring story of a woman breaking barriers in a male-dominated world, and risking her life to change the way we see it. Winslet shines as the courageous Lee, exposing her courage, fear and grief. 

The story is told through Lee later in her life speaking to her son Antony (Josh O’Connor). It’s these intimate moments of listening to her tell the story that we see the longing effects of anguish and trauma Lee carried her whole life. The moments of Lee on the frontline are impactful. Showing the grotesque nature of war upon women rather than the men who are fighting.

Lee is an important film about a monumental woman in our history.

Lee screens at TIFF ’23:

Saturday, September 9 at 6 PM at Roy Thompson Hall

Sunday, September 10 at 5:30 PM at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto