The idea of Kate Winslet portraying a historical figure like Lee Miller is - on the face of it - rather attractive. And unsurprisingly, the veteran actor delivers, with a great performance that portrays both Miller's courage and skill, as well as her vulnerabilities. At the very least the movie gives you a sense of how she was able to be such a trailblazer, and why after the war she struggled so. Other than that, Lee falls - disappointingly - into pretty standard biopic territory. Miller's life was certainly interesting, and the movie does reflect that. The problem is it only ever feels like we're scratching the surface of who she was, with mere glimpses of her wartime experiences. That said, those glimpses do highlight Miller's incredible talent as a photographer, and it's through this that we get to see the war - as well as the barbarity of the Nazi regime - from her unique perspective.
Seeing her life, and to an extent those of her friends, before, during and after the war, does at least give us an inkling of the detrimental effects of that devastating conflict - life literally drained. All of which helps us to understand Miller's drive to do her part, and to document the horrors of life in war, whilst emphasising the importance of certain relationships. Such as those with Davy Scherman (Andy Samberg) and Audrey Withers (Andrea Riseborough). Riseborough is delightful as the incredibly upbeat editor of British Vogue, while Samberg brings only a small element of his well known comedic charm to his performance as Scherman - just enough to show us why he was one of the few people Miller actually liked working with. After seeing Samberg in so many comedy roles it's good to see him stretch out into something different, and he doesn't disappoint. In fact, much like the real Miller and Scherman, Winslet and Samberg work really well together.
However, even as we follow them deeper into Europe and they are exposed to the atrocities of the Holocaust, this very enjoyable central partnership with Scherman - one of the movie's high points - goes pretty much unexplored. As does her relationship with husband Roland Penrose (Alexander Skarsgård). While the whole setup conversation between Winslet and Josh O'Connor doesn't really work. O'Connor is very good opposite Winslet, and their scenes together do speak to the trauma that Miller suffered with after the war, it's just that it's a rather meandering way to get to the movie's ultimate realisation about its central figure. One that has a habit of interrupting the otherwise steady pacing, and constantly taking you out of the movie. Ultimately however, this somewhat extravagant setup - a nod to the book that inspired the movie - simply takes too much time away from exploring Miller's actual experiences.
Unsurprisingly, Winslet delivers a great performance as Lee Miller, and she and Andy Samberg work really well together. But it feels like this rather standard biopic merely scratches the surface of this legendary war correspondent and her incredible life.
7/10
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