--- title: "Lee: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/lee/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/lee" critics_score: 62 critics_reviews: 9 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Lee (2024): what the critics said Critics' score 62 from 9 reviews: 4 positive, 3 mixed, 2 negative. Every review agrees on Kate Winslet. Critics describe her Lee Miller as prickly, magnetic and raw, and several say she is the only reason to see the film. The disagreement is about everything around her. The most common complaint is that the film is a conventional biopic, moving through the war photographer’s decade as a procession of events, with an interview framing device that most find adds little. The i Paper calls it drab and rushed, with a wasted supporting cast, and Collider finds it generic and dry. The Playlist blames a pedestrian screenplay while praising the concentration camp sequences, which Film Stories also singles out as the strongest passages. On the warmer side, the Los Angeles Times credits Kuras’s eye as a cinematographer, and Deadline admires the film for letting Miller resist interpretation. The spread is wide, from dismissals to four-star notices, but the middle settles on handsome, safe and carried by its lead. ## Empire — Sophie Butcher Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 9 September 2024. The critic finds it a handsomely made, moving biopic hampered by conventional storytelling and an interview framing device, but redeemed by strong performances. Winslet and Samberg are singled out for their chemistry and emotional depth in key scenes. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/lee/) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 15 September 2024. The film is a sobering, impactful biopic that offers a woman’s-eye view of Lee Miller’s wartime photography. Winslet gives a remarkable performance capturing Miller’s toughness and magnetism, though the score feels generic. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/sep/15/lee-review-kate-winslet-remarkable-portrait-of-war-photographer-lee-miller-ellen-kuras) ## The Telegraph — Robbie Collin Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 12 September 2024. Winslet plays to her strengths in this handsome biopic about the model-turned-war photographer Lee Miller. It celebrates Miller as a difficult woman who defies convention but gives the subject and audience an easy ride overall. [Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/lee-review-kate-winslet/) ## Time Out — Alex Sims Rating 3/5. 5 September 2024. Winslet shines as the tenacious photographer, and the film effectively recreates her iconic images to highlight photography's power. However, it plods without emotional depth or strong supporting characters. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/lee-review-2024) ## The i Paper — Francesca Steele Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 13 September 2024. The critic calls it a disappointingly drab biopic that feels like a Wikipedia page, with Winslet magnetic but the only standout in a rushed procession of events lacking character depth. The supporting cast is largely wasted and the narrative is plodding. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/lee-review-kate-winslet-boring-biopic-3269575) ## Financial Times — Danny Leigh Rating ★★★★☆. 12 September 2024. The biopic is a powerful portrait of the woman who captured striking images of the Second World War. Winslet is vivid in close-up as Miller, and the film has snap in its handling despite a busy script. [Read the review](https://www.ft.com/content/fc22f83b-2744-4c86-aef6-05f9c9ebcf9d) ## IndieWire — Natalia Winkelman 13 September 2023. Festival review. The critic calls the film a conventional and clunky biopic that fails to inspire despite Winslet's star turn as the WWII photographer. Kuras's directorial debut is seen as overly standard in its approach to the material. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/lee-review-kate-winslet-1234905156/) ## Los Angeles Times — Katie Walsh 26 September 2024. Winslet delivers a tremendous, prickly performance as the hardened photojournalist with a hidden wound. The film is a penetrating biopic that benefits from Kuras's visual sensibility as a cinematographer-turned-director. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2024-09-26/lee-review-kate-winslet-andy-samberg-marion-cotillard-miller-wwii) ## RogerEbert.com — Nell Minow 27 September 2024. The film is a conventional biopic that struggles to fully illuminate its subject's inner life beyond her work as a photographer. Winslet's performance stands out as raw and emotionally compelling, especially in a late confessional scene. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/lee-kate-winslet-movie-review) ## Screen Daily 10 September 2023. Festival review. Kuras delivers a satisfyingly textured portrait of an unusual woman with a gift for bearing witness. Winslet's outstanding performance anchors this involving but safe historical drama. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/lee-toronto-review/5185762.article) ## Sight and Sound 12 September 2024. The biopic focuses on Miller's wartime work but feels flat and lifeless at times by streamlining her complex personal life. Winslet's performance captures Miller's indomitable spirit and bravery. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/lee-kate-winslet-captures-lee-millers-indomitable-spirit-this-earnest-wartime-biopic) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Lovia Gyarkye 10 September 2023. Festival review. The critic finds Winslet's energetic performance the highlight of a glossy, conventional, and polished biopic that feels at odds with its subject's restless and complicated nature. The tidy structure and awards-ready gloss smooth over contradictions in Miller's life. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/lee-review-kate-winslet-1235586645/) ## The New York Times — Lisa Kennedy 26 September 2024. The movie smartly focuses on a decade of Miller's life and uses her photographs effectively as tribute. Winslet's performance conveys the force and tenacity behind the camera. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/26/movies/lee-review.html) ## Variety 30 October 2023. Festival review. Winslet brings impressive range and emotional rawness to the role in this standard, proficient biopic. The film lacks formal innovation to match its subject's fury but highlights her defiance and complexity effectively. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2023/film/reviews/lee-review-kate-winslet-1235774028/) ## Deadline — Damon Wise Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 16 September 2023. Festival review. The critic praises Kate Winslet's nuanced performance in portraying the complex life of photographer Lee Miller, highlighting the film's focus on her artistic drive and wartime experiences over simplistic narratives. It singles out Winslet's ability to capture Miller's refusal to be analyzed or interpreted as a strength. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2023/09/lee-review-kate-winslet-complex-biopic-alexander-skarsgard-josh-oconnor-1235548700/) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 9 September 2023. Festival review. The review commends Winslet's portrayal of Lee Miller as a fierce and determined war photographer, emphasizing her courage in capturing harrowing images from WWII. It notes the film's exploration of an underrecognized historical figure but points to the familiar framing device as offering little depth. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/lee-review-kate-winslet-tiff/) ## The Playlist — Jason Bailey Rating C-. 9 September 2023. Festival review. The visually striking film is let down by a pedestrian screenplay full of exposition and weak characterization, though Winslet delivers strong moments and the concentration camp sequences are viscerally effective. It exemplifies the challenges of a cinematographer’s directorial debut. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/lee-review-kate-winslet-gets-her-oscar-clips-in-ellen-kuras-visually-immaculate-but-standard-issue-biopic-tiff-20230909/) ## Collider — Nate Richard Rating 4/10. 27 September 2024. Winslet delivers a strong, committed performance as Miller, but the biopic feels generic, dry, and uninspired overall, like a dated HBO TV movie that fails to explore its subject's inner life despite a talented cast. [Read the review](https://collider.com/lee-review/) ## Eye for Film — Richard Mowe 13 September 2024. Winslet’s performance anchors the film with a powerful portrait of Miller’s abrasive personality and complex response to war’s horrors. The conventional biopic structure leaves some narrative threads underdeveloped, but the core story and key images resonate. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/lee-2023-film-review-by-richard-mowe) ## Film Stories — James Harvey 12 September 2024. The critic finds the film a well-meaning but clumsy biopic that prioritizes a simplified account of WWII over deep exploration of its protagonist, resulting in a heavy-handed script and bland visuals. Some dialogue-free scenes depicting the Holocaust are powerful, and Andy Samberg stands out in a dramatic role. [Read the review](https://filmstories.co.uk/reviews/lee-review-a-well-meaning-yet-clumsy-historical-biopic/) ## Paste — Nadira Begum Rating 8.5. 23 September 2024. Winslet captivates as the driven photojournalist in this gripping WWII biopic that uses Miller's story to highlight women's varied experiences during war and the importance of documenting atrocities. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/kate-winslet/lee-review) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/lee.md