This is a biopic of the photo-journalist Lee Miller, [full biography on Wikipedia]. In this feature she is played in a fine performance by Kate Winslet. Winslet is also the co-producer and worked closely with the writers and first-time-director Ellen Kuras, previously known for her work as a cinematographer. The movie enjoys a fine production with a strong supporting cast.

The film opens in the 1930s when Lee Miller was transitioning from a model to a photographer. She collaborated for a time with Man Ray and was also his lover. We see and hear some of the surrealist circle though who is who is unclear, [unless you watch the captioned version]. Lee Miller was a ‘free spirit’ but this and her relationships are only partly presented.

The movie concentrates on the World War II period when Lee worked for the British edition of Vogue. She usually worked with a Rolleiflex camera, a larger format and less compact than the Leica camera many other photographer used: one of these being the U.S. Dick Scherman (Andy Sandberg). After distinctive work on the British home front Lee was able to accompany U.S. Forces in the campaign in Europe after D-Day. As with the British her gender restricted her access but she firmly resisted this. Her most famous works were the photographs she took of the camps and victims of the Third Reich’s holocaust. These were censured in Britain but finally appeared in the U.S. edition of Vogue. The form of the narrative is an interview where particular and famous photographs by Lee provide references for a series of flashbacks. The interview and the use of photographs works well.

However, the writers have also attempted to make the interview a quest, not just for Lee’s career, but also her character and motivation and I found this aspect a little unsatisfactory.

Still it is a fine and powerful study. The production design, cinematography and editing are all excellent. The features is in colour and 1.85.1, running just under two hours. The dialogue is in English and French with appropriate sub-titles. This is definitely worth seeing and Lee’s biography is an fascinating study of a pioneering women and a period.