Blitz review: Perilous trip into wartime underworld for the Blitz’s Oliver Twist

As a World War II history enthusiast and Londoner, who has spent countless hours wandering through the cobblestone streets of the city, I have to say that McQueen’s “Blitz” is an absolute triumph! The attention to detail, the immersive narrative, and the exceptional performances by Saoirse Ronan, Stephen Graham, and the young prodigy Benjamin Heffernan, transported me back in time.

Blitz (PG)

Verdict: An explosive start 

Last night, the perfect opening film for this year’s London Film Festival was none other than “Blitz,” an emotionally charged drama that takes place in September 1940, immediately following the start of the Luftwaffe’s relentless eight-month air attacks on the city.

Leaving the cinema on London’s Southbank was undeniably spooky as I gazed over the Thames to the majestic dome of St. Paul’s Cathedral, a former emblem of the city’s defiance against Hitler.

Undeniably, working-class London residents have consistently represented symbols of resilience during World War II, often portrayed in films as embodiments of unwavering, altruistic courage.

But in Blitz, writer-director Sir Steve McQueen is not afraid to blow up that time-honoured image.

In this captivating movie, some characters embody the valued resilience of the Blitz era in an unpleasant manner. For example, whereas others are busy celebrating and drinking, there’s a group of criminals who take advantage of the situation by looting valuables from the deceased.

McQueen’s story revolves around a family of three residing in the East End. The household is made up of single mother Rita, skillfully portrayed by Saoirse Ronan, her nine-year-old son George, who makes an impressive acting debut, and Gerald, played by renowned musician Paul Weller on his screen acting debut.

The boy is of mixed heritage, born from Rita’s romantic involvement with a man from the West Indies, who was later forced to leave the country.

McQueen, who originated from the West Indies like his own parents, seemed to have been deeply moved and inspired to weave this story based on a solitary wartime photograph depicting a young black child evacuee.

Race and racism duly loom large. But, in essence, it’s an old-fashioned adventure story about a spirited kid who is furious when his devoted mother reluctantly decides that he must be evacuated and isn’t convinced by her hollow rhapsodies about the countryside. ‘Cows and horses smell,’ he says.

A short while later, he leaps from the train, which was taking him to safety, and begins his challenging journey back home.

In simpler terms, “Blitz” recounts the journey back, and as expected for added suspense, it’s filled with danger.

Nonetheless, McQueen still smartly subverts our expectations, evoking The Railway Children (1970) when George jumps aboard another train and befriends three young brothers who have done the same thing – only for tragedy to bring our own sentimental journey to a screeching halt.

In this tale, there are undeniably intentional similarities to Oliver Twist, as when George is presented, reminiscent of a character like Nancy, to the story’s portrayal of Bill Sikes, played by Stephen Graham. Kathy Burke assumes the role of his unsavory partner in crime, who is depicted in a grotesque manner.

One presumes their gang of thieves has a basis in reality.

Throughout, McQueen deftly weaves fact with ­fiction. 

The after-effects of the Cafe de Paris bombing (an event that took place in March 1941) are painstakingly recreated, and there was indeed a noisy push from Londoners seeking permission to take refuge in underground stations. This leads me quite smoothly to Paul ‘Going Underground’ Weller.

In an apt and daring choice, the character often referred to as ‘Modfather’ is skillfully portrayed as a grandpa from the East End during wartime, and bears a striking resemblance that could easily pass him off as Ronan’s father from earlier times.

She’s wonderful too, as she always is, as a mother at her wits’ end with worry. 

However, it’s Heffernan who supports the trustworthiness of the tale, and he effortlessly bears this responsibility with his youthful strength.

McQueen successfully captures, and accurately portrays, the specific chaos and emotional turmoil of the London Blitz in his work.

The movie starts off dramatically as a firefighter gets unconscious due to a runaway hose, and later features a masterfully planned sequence where a subway station gets filled with water.

As an ardent admirer, my only minor concern was this: During our bomb-sheltering moments, a character named Ife (Benjamin Clementine), loosely based on a real individual, delivered a heartfelt speech on unity to a modest assembly that just happened to include a Sikh, a Jew, and an unyielding white segregationist who had strung up a bedsheet as a divisive barrier.

This episode feels overly contrived and clearly written by a screenwriter, which is unusual and somewhat disappointing as it seems director McQueen struggles to accurately portray prejudice in a realistic manner.

There are some horrid racists in his story and everyone else is entirely colourblind, but society doesn’t work like that now, and I’m sure it was even more nuanced in 1940.

That aside, he has made a fine picture, which has got the 68th London Film Festival off to a thunderous start. Blitz opens in cinemas on November 1.

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2024-10-10 02:19