As a historian who has spent countless hours immersed in the tales of the Blitz, I found Steve McQueen’s “Blitz” to be an engaging and visually stunning portrayal of those early days of terror and resilience. The attention to detail in the costumes and the gritty realism of the chaos on the streets were particularly noteworthy, evoking a sense of authenticity that is often lacking in period dramas.
Steve McQueen’s Blitz presents a richly detailed yet expansive portrayal of war-torn London in 1940, as experienced by a nine-year-old boy, Elliott Heffernan (newcomer), yearning to return home to his lone mother, Rita (played by Saoirse Ronan). Not surprisingly, given its location, the movie mirrors the hardships and melodrama often found in Dickensian works. However, unlike Charles Dickens, it provides minimal instances of the humorous relief that he was known for. Yet, there’s no disputing its powerful message about the hardships endured by ordinary people when civilian areas are bombarded.
Although there are many aspects of this production worth appreciating – such as impressive sequences, excellent technical elements, and a significant step forward in portraying London’s racial diversity during the period – the drama frequently lacks the nuance that characterizes the British writer-director’s work at its peak. The film, running exactly two hours, seems to have been meticulously edited to fit a strict time frame, which gives the impression of a project that has been overly condensed or abridged in places.
Perhaps if the narrative had allowed for a bit more flexibility, like expanding its waistline, it could have provided a more spacious environment for its plot and characters to fully develop. The underutilization of Harris Dickinson, a popular actor known for his roles in “Triangle of Sadness” and soon to be seen in “Babygirl,” who primarily seems to cast admiring glances at Ronan from the periphery, hints that some secondary elements may have been discarded during production.
The somewhat limited feel of “Blitz” might restrict its chances as an awards contender and reduce its appeal as a blockbuster in foreign markets. However, it is expected to do well as a theatrical release in the U.K., prior to its November 22 premiere on Apple TV+, due to the British’ fondness for all things that remind them of keeping calm and carrying on.
Viewed through the lens of auteur theory, this work aligns seamlessly with Steve McQueen’s cinematic portfolio. There is a clear correlation between the topics and motifs he has been delving into lately, such as his recent television series Small Axe, which concentrates on the Black community in Britain, and the documentary film Occupied City, which combines voiceover narration detailing historical events linked to specific Amsterdam addresses during WWII with modern footage of those same locations today.
In conversations leading up to the debut of “Blitz” at the BFI London Film Festival, McQueen has shared that the release of both “Blitz” and “Occupied City” happening consecutively was somewhat unplanned. However, they share a strong connection, spanning the North Sea. Both films depict the hardships endured by capital city residents under Nazi rule, highlighting how war can bring out the best in some people while also revealing their darkest instincts.
Simultaneously, McQueen shared that the decision to center the story around a young biracial boy was sparked by a photograph he came across during his research for Small Axe. The image depicted a Black child in an oversized coat, bearing an enigmatic and stoic expression, as he was being evacuated during the war. Heffernan, who McQueen and casting director Nina Gold discovered during a wide-ranging search for the main role of George, strongly resembles that boy. Despite having limited acting experience beyond school plays, Heffernan holds his own on stage, displaying a poised demeanor and unwavering, candid gaze alongside his more seasoned co-stars.
From their initial moments together, it’s evident that there’s a strong bond between him and Ronan. In these instances, they are depicted cuddling at night as Rita attempts to console her son about the upcoming evacuation – a large-scale operation that displaced approximately 1.5 million individuals from urban areas such as London, Liverpool, and others, which were severely hit by bombings from the Luftwaffe. It’s understandable that George is reluctant to separate from Rita, his grandfather Gerald (portrayed by Paul Weller, a renowned British pop star making his acting debut here), his feline companion Olly (performed by Zinger and Tinkerbell), and all of his friends.
It’s evident that George has valid concerns about encountering people outside the city who might not be accustomed to interacting with people of color, as he’s not explicitly stated. Unfortunately, his fears are confirmed when he faces bullying shortly after getting on a train filled with children. With a sense of foreboding, George decides to make a difficult choice and jump off the slow-moving steam train, opting instead to return to London.
George’s adventure kicks off. His return journey is filled with setbacks, accidents, and surprises just like Odysseus’, but it won’t take him a decade. Jumping onto another train, he encounters three lads his age who also decided to head home immediately. They enjoy a thrilling rooftop ride after George agrees to a dare, allowing composer Hans Zimmer and his team to unleash a rhythmic, pulsating soundtrack. Upon reaching the city outskirts, he needs to find his way back to Stepney Green in the East End, a journey that would confound most Londoners today if it weren’t for Google Maps.
Over several days, many events transpire. He befriends Ife, a Nigerian immigrant who works as a blackout warden. The virtues and compassion displayed by Ife serve as the ideal embodiment of Black masculinity that George has been lacking in his life, since he never knew Marcus, his Caribbean father, who was unfairly deported before George’s birth.
Shortly after George bids farewell to Ife, marked by a heavy dose of sadness, he encounters a band of unscrupulous Cockney thieves, headed by siblings Albert and Beryl. These characters, portrayed masterfully by Stephen Graham and Kathy Burke – two exceptional British actors, although Burke doesn’t appear much on screen these days – exude an enjoyment for overacting the scenery with zest. They inject a darkly comical flair into the storyline that feels fitting, despite their characters engaging in gruesome acts such as amputating fingers from corpses to steal rings.
Across town, Rita (unaware that George hasn’t arrived at his destination) is living her own memorable series of Blitz moments. She works in a munitions factory and her friends Tilda (Hayley Squires) and Doris (Erin Kellyman) comfort her about sending George away. They all wear Rosie the Riveter-style headscarves and utility aprons, with Jacqueline Durran’s costumes once again spot on. Rita, being the daughter of a pub piano player, gets to perform live when the BBC comes for a morale-boosting radio broadcast, and Ronan beautifully performs a mix of 1940s songs created by Nicholas Britell and Taura Stinson. At night, they head to the pub to enjoy themselves before air raid sirens ring again and fear fills the streets.
As the Blitz kicked off, McQueen showed us how people were initially barred from seeking shelter in underground stations, leading to chaotic scenes at the locked gates as there seemed nowhere else to run. Once allowed inside, we saw that the crowds weren’t much safer, as demonstrated when a bomb explosion burst a water main, flooding one station and turning it into a scene of utter pandemonium.
A series of firefighters battling to extinguish a blazing building using a canvas hose they have difficulty managing symbolizes the sheer terror of those initial bombing days. The shots of flames and the muted color scheme evoke the style of documentarian Humphrey Jennings, particularly his film “Fires Were Started” (1943) and its abstract imagery, which serves as a significant documentation of the Blitz. At times, the camera appears to ascend, giving the impression of being carried by a drone, to survey streets scarred with missing or partially destroyed buildings and smoldering debris – all of it convincingly computer-generated. On occasion, McQueen jolts and shakes the camera, resulting in blurs that then resolve into an aerial view from a plane’s perspective, or a field of white daisies. This technique imparts a dreamlike quality reminiscent of McQueen’s early works, which featured experimental perspectives and in-camera stunts as homage to silent cinema.
The personal, unconventional elements in Blitz give it a unique edge, infusing an authentic, biting roughness to balance the overused clichés found elsewhere. It appears as if McQueen is on a mission to avoid any trite device or trope. Scenes such as someone desperately running after a departing train on a platform? Indeed. Young women marking stocking seams onto their bare legs with eyebrow pencils? Absolutely. A lively sing-along around an old piano because, in the end, life is worth living to its fullest? You bet your boots – that’s checked off too!
Simultaneously, almost every moment of pure happiness seems to be followed by sorrow or misfortune. A flashback scene shows Rita with Marcus in a predominantly Black dancehall, where he gifts her a St. Christopher’s medal (another common trope). She will later pass this same medal to their son many years down the line. Soon after this heartwarming moment, Marcus gets into an altercation and is taken away by the police, never to be seen or heard from again.
At least their dancing, along with a later scene set in the ill-fated Café de Paris, is delicious and a sensual throwback to McQueen’s dance-driven Lovers Rock — for my money, the best and most innovative episode of Small Axe. One of the things that made the earlier film so compelling was how little really happened in it. The drama, the romance and the emotion were all enmeshed in the music and the way the characters moved to it, reacting to both the sound and to each other.
Excessive in every aspect, “Blitz” stands as a stark contrast to the streamlined narrative style of “Lovers Rock”; they differ in almost every regard, save for the fact that both conclude unexpectedly, leaving behind the heavy silence of the dawn and a melancholic sense of resolution.
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2024-10-09 22:01