On Apple TV+ you can watch the war drama 'Blitz' by the director of '12 Years a Slave'. Why we strongly recommend doing so — in our review.

September 1940. German aircraft bomb British cities daily. Many areas of London have already been reduced to ruins. The government, aware of the acute shortage of bomb shelters, initiates a mass evacuation of children from the bombed zones.

Single mother Rita (Saoirse Ronan), at the insistence of her father (Paul Weller), makes a difficult decision — to send her son George (Elliott Heffernan) to a safe place. The boy himself categorically disagrees with this arrangement and secretly leaves the train carrying the children. He has no idea how many life trials await him in the coming days.

In terms of genre, Steve McQueen's new work should be classified as an adventure film. 'Blitz' is an archetypal odyssey where the hero overcomes obstacles on his way home. Each chapter of his journey has its own set of secondary characters who do not extend beyond these novellas.

But this almost fairy-tale motif of wandering, as if borrowed from Saint-Exupéry's 'The Little Prince', shatters against the harsh reality of World War II. As soon as what is happening on screen begins to vaguely resemble peaceful pre-war life, the deceptive idyll immediately collapses under the deafening wail of 'air raid sirens'. At the same moment, relatively calm scenes are treacherously invaded by shots of German shells hanging in the sky.

The child's perspective allows many things to be stripped down to basic, seemingly self-evident truths. Of course, there are countless stories told from this angle, and McQueen does not reinvent the wheel in this regard. A child's gaze, almost always naive but unclouded by gray morality and compromises with conscience, serves as an excellent tool for discussing complex topics.

The universe would probably collapse if Steve McQueen did not touch on racial discrimination and the burden of colonialism in his film. The director shows how some seemingly respectable gentlemen, when encountering an Indian or an African, are seized by a primitive irrational malice, reinforced by a sense of their own superiority.

This is also declared by the exhibition of imperial achievements, where fate brings George. Behind every record displayed in large font on a plaque, in reality, lies the slave labor of the crown's overseas subjects. And the inhabitants of these territories themselves are depicted there as savages with insane grimaces. McQueen comes too close to drawing an equal sign between the Scylla of colonialism and the Charybdis of Hitlerism.

Incidentally, the main character himself is half-black. According to the plot, his father was originally from Grenada. Interestingly, this fact echoes the director's biography.

There is also a female perspective in the film — it is represented by Saoirse Ronan's character. Her storyline is not as eventful, but it still touches the soul thanks to the actress's tender performance. Rita, unlike her friends, experiences a permanent need to care for someone. At the same time, she is not inclined to show her feelings openly. Even when in despair due to separation from her son, the girl demonstrates emotional resilience to everyone. Throughout the film, she breaks down only twice: during the farewell with George at the station and when she learns that he got off the train.

And Rita also has a hypnotically beautiful voice. There is a suspicion that the song Winter Coat, written by Nicholas Britell specifically for the film, was added there with an eye on a place in the corresponding category at the Oscars. Most of the film's original soundtrack is by Hans Zimmer. His music appropriately complements what is happening on screen, but ultimately does not stick in the head. Perhaps the reason is the absence of a memorable main melody, for which the legendary composer is famous.

Perhaps you are already concluding that 'Blitz' from Apple TV+ is a classic Oscar bait. On one hand, this is not far from the truth, as the film fits the award template by all informal criteria. On the other hand, the paradoxical combination of relevant content and old-fashioned form turns out to be impressive, and it would not be entirely fair to hold this against the film. Unexpectedly for many, Steve McQueen's film did not receive any Golden Globe nominations, and there is no reason to believe the situation will be different with the Oscars. What a pity! This breathtaking epic story is too good to remain outside the awards season.

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