The True Story Behind the War Photographer Biopic Lee

As a seasoned moviegoer who has witnessed countless tales unfold on the silver screen, I must say that Kate Winslet’s portrayal of Lee Miller in the film “Lee” left an indelible impression upon me. The film, which masterfully captures the essence of Miller’s life during World War II, is a testament to the power of resilience and the unyielding spirit of women who dared to challenge societal norms.

When Kate Winslet embarked on her endeavor to create a movie about the photographer Lee Miller, she recognized that it wouldn’t be able to cover every aspect of Miller’s life.

Speaking with TIME for a recent interview, I found myself reflecting on the extraordinary journey of her life – so rich and multifaceted that it seems almost unimaginable to capture it all on the silver screen.

In this project, titled “Lee“, Kate Winslet – both starring in it and producing it – chose to focus on a specific era: World War II. Directed by Ellen Kuras, the film premiered at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival and will hit theaters on September 27. The movie primarily unfolds during World War II, showcasing Miller as she documented the Blitz, Paris liberation, and concentration camps of Dachau and Buchenwald. Winslet brilliantly portrays Miller as an unrelenting force and a pioneer in her field, with an exceptional sensitivity towards the pain she captured through her images.

The screenplay by Liz Hannah, John Collee, and Marion Hume features a narrative style that moves back and forth in time. In this story, the main character, Miller (born in 1907 and passing away in 1977), is interviewed at an advanced age by a journalist – later identified as her son, Antony Penrose, portrayed by Josh O’Connor. Notably, the movie is adapted from a segment of Penrose’s 1985 book titled “The Lives of Lee Miller“.

In the beginning of his biography, Penrose introduces Lee Miller as a woman who had worn many hats: a model in the fashion world, a photographer, a war correspondent, an author, a lover of classical music, a gourmet cook, a globetrotter. She effortlessly navigated through these diverse spheres, always remaining true to herself. By the time we encounter the central figure in the book Lee, she had already experienced several of those lives and found her passion behind the camera.

Hilary Roberts, who authored a book and organized an exhibition about Miller, once shared with the New York Times: “Although she belonged to the first wave of women who could vote, she clearly understood that she resided in a male-dominated society. Photography provided Miller with a platform for her personal annoyance and a method to assert control.

As a devoted cinephile, I must share my thoughts on a fascinating figure in cinema history – a woman who was more than just a model for Vogue or a muse to surrealist photographer Man Ray. We shared friendship with Picasso, yet this film gracefully distances her from the illustrious men in her life.

In these initial stages, according to Kuras, Kate aimed to reflect the spirit of women, as they held a unique sense of freedom and an air of nonchalance in their lives. This carefree attitude stands in stark contrast to the strictures that would follow later on, particularly during wartime. It was during this time that everyone began to notice and appreciate the significant difference between what life was like before and what it became during the war.

In the narrative, I come across a friend of Miller’s – Solange d’Ayen, portrayed by Marion Cotillard – on screen, although she wasn’t featured in the image mentioned earlier. This encounter takes place in Paris post-liberation. Solange, once known for her glamour, is now struggling financially and is despairing.

The film doesn’t delve deeply into Miller’s life after the war, a period marked by her marriage to Roland while expecting Antony and her struggles with depression. However, in her later phase of life, she discovered a passion for cooking. Penrose remarked that it ignited Lee’s fascination with unusual matters.

For a span of eight years, Winslet collaborated intimately with Penrose, the real-life son of Miller and artist Roland Penrose, who followed in his mother’s artistic footsteps as a photographer. Furthermore, she sought advice from Miller’s close friends still alive, such as Bettina McNulty, a fashion publicist for Vogue. “When I conversed with her,” Winslet recalls, “it was challenging to discern the things she was saying. However, she revealed intimate details to me that she didn’t share elsewhere, and I knew she was doing so because she sensed her time was limited and there were things she wanted to express.

Kuras’ film, starring Alexander Skarsgård as Roland, primarily explores three significant relationships from Miller’s career period. These include British Vogue editor Audrey Withers (Andrea Riseborough), fellow photojournalist David Scherman (Andy Samberg), and a strained relationship with the Vogue photographer Cecil Beaton, portrayed by Samuel Barnett. The film, as well as Antony Penrose’s book, depicts a tense dynamic between them, with some of the movie’s humorous instances coming from their snide exchanges. (Penrose wrote, “Lee loathed him and found his arrogance, technical incompetence, and open displays of antisemitic sentiments repugnant.”)

With Scherman, Miller endured the most harrowing events of the war. He once stated, “During the conflict, Lee and I were rarely apart. We encountered each other at our union with the Russians, and we met again at Dachau. We also shared the experience of infiltrating Hitler’s headquarters in Munich.” It was there that they collaborated on one of Miller’s most iconic works. Inside Hitler’s residence, Miller posed for a self-portrait, capturing an image of herself washing in a bathtub. Scherman took the photograph, which serves as a powerful gesture of defiance against the dictator.

Lee additionally connects Miller’s personal suffering from her childhood trauma to the atrocities she observed during the war. At age 7, Miller resided with relatives in Brooklyn while her mother was unwell, where she suffered sexual assault and contracted a venereal disease. In the movie, before the full extent of her own abuse is disclosed, Miller is depicted protecting a young French girl from harassment and showing compassion to a woman whose hair was shaved after being accused of collaborating with the Germans. Consequently, Winslet and Kuras imply that Winslet’s harrowing past made her an exceptionally compassionate journalist and artist.

Lee’s exceptional self-acceptance leaves a profound impact on me,” Winslet expresses. “It influenced me during the entire time I portrayed her, and it continues to inspire me each and every day since.

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2024-09-27 15:06