In his admittedly short filmography, British director Steve McQueen has captured some of the bleakest, most harrowing images in modern cinema. And yet, few are as ferocious as the opening to his latest film, Blitz. Germany has begun their umpteenth air raid against Britain as the Second World War grows more and more violent. A brigade of firemen attempts to put out a roaring apartment fire on the streets. At first, the men struggle to get water out of their hose, its lining covered in debris and the faucet just out of reach. The men are shouting at one another, attempting to communicate against the blaring alarms and surrounding explosions. Then, upon water finally spewing out of the hose, the pressure from the water rockets the nozzle into a fireman’s head, knocking him out. The hose flies everywhere, unable to be contained by the firemen as it flagellates across the air. Even when they finally grab a hold of it, the water does little to smother the rampant flames. Hope feels lost, an afterthought in the unending throes of violence and destruction.
This brief yet terrifying vignette sets an important precedent for Blitz. Though a period war thriller may be McQueen’s most conventional framework to continue his career-long exploration of political violence, it is by no means a crutch. If anything, it is a newly minted stage on which the masterful director is able to craft some of his most ambitious, most searing imagery yet. His second film in a row to be focused on World War II, McQueen sets Blitz during the eponymous and aforementioned period of London bombings, also known as Blitzkrieg. Commanding both a larger budget and a larger canvas to recreate the fire and brimstone London endured, McQueen reaffirms his commitment to capturing war’s highs and lows, even if the fervor of said commitment leaves its tonal balance uneven.

Blitz is told from the perspective of mother-son duo Rita (Saoirse Ronan) and George (newcomer Elliott Heffernan). George, a young Black boy, struggles with racism from his surrounding community, while Rita struggles to juggle a factory job whilst raising her son without his father, who is mysteriously out of the picture. The intensity of the bombings pushes Rita to send George away on a train with hundreds of other children retreating to the countryside, far away from the bomb-laden city. George initially refuses to go, however, he inevitably is sent away – only for him to later escape the train and find himself stranded. Cunning and fiercely independent, George begins a journey back to his home and to his mother, who, upon learning of his escape, begins her own odyssey to track George down.
Ronan is, expectedly, in top form as Rita, a woman whose love for the arts shines through an otherwise quiet yet protective nature. Though the actress’ vast array of Oscar-nominated work is hard to match up to, her work here is undeniably affecting, especially in scenes where she shows off her actual singing voice (though the sound work lacks the live punch that would make these scenes fully soar). Especially welcome, however, is Heffernan, who is making his acting debut. The newcomer gives George many multitudes, from a hardened exterior to a precocious English spirit. McQueen imbues the character with a very explicit coming of age – something novel to see from the director – and, when combined with Heffernan’s beautifully nuanced work, the director evokes something faintly Spielbergian. George’s peaks of pathos make it stand out significantly against Rita’s more conventional journey, which is, subsequently, given less screen time.

That said, the duo encounters a number of characters throughout their journey: a trio of triplets who have also escaped the train, an optimistic Black air-raid warden (Benjamin Clementine in a scene-stealing turn), and even a thieving team of grave robbers (led by Stephen Graham). Before your eyes, McQueen’s intimate family story gives way to a more sprawling portrait of a country in crisis both structurally and spiritually. The violent air raids are the obvious threat to civilization, but far greater threats emerge: racism, classism, and prejudice against one’s fellow man. Though McQueen excels at thrusting audiences into intense, violent setpieces, much of it is underpinned by scenes that present an unabashedly optimistic vision of unity and a refusal to let hatred win the day. It isn’t subtle – some may call it preachy – but McQueen understands that this is how wars are won. It is an essential piece of the film’s soul and, particularly through George’s lens, its secret weapon.
That said, McQueen also knows how to shoot the hell out of an action sequence. Blitz is, without question, the most elaborate production the director has ever taken on; even something as sweeping as his Small Axe anthology told very contained, tightly budgeted stories. Thankfully, McQueen and co. excel in every technical department, from gorgeously detailed production and costume design to unrelenting stunt and sound work that ranks amongst the year’s best. Even composer Hans Zimmer, whose recent works tend to lean on the safer side of his now iconic sound (unless you’re on Arrakis), provides one of his best scores in years, channeling the percussive integrations of Dunkirk into a broader, bolder sonic palette. When all of these production values come together, the filmmaking soars; one particular sequence set within a flooding subway is a major highlight, making for one of the year’s most tremendous, suspenseful scenes.
Naturally, weaving together both sides of McQueen’s coin – the inspirational and the inconsolable – is no easy task. If Blitz falters in one area, it is that the film is so ready to embrace the ends of its own spectrum that the gray area in-between can feel a bit jarring. Scene transitions lack the tact in both the scripting and the editing to smooth out the tonal juxtaposition, making it feel awkward at times. That said, this can also be spun as yet another attempt from McQueen to more accurately reflect the wartime experience. The sudden jolt of the air raid alarm doesn’t take tonality into account. When you know a threat is coming, your only concern is to survive it. Though this may not be a genre exercise to everyone’s taste, McQueen trusts in his own vision and goes for the throat to maximum effect. For those whose hearts are open to feel the gravity of its events, Blitz will be utterly transportive and one of the year’s most affecting cinematic experiences.
Blitz held its North American premiere as the Closing Night selection as part of the 2024 New York Film Festival. It will be released in select theaters on November 1, with a subsequent global release on Apple TV+ on November 22, 2024.
Director: Steve McQueen
Writer: Steve McQueen
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 120m

Steve McQueen has reached new technical and emotional heights with 'Blitz,' even if its balance of resilience and destruction can lead to a patchy tonal balance.
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GVN Rating 8
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Larry Fried is a filmmaker, writer, and podcaster based in New Jersey. He is the host and creator of the podcast “My Favorite Movie is…,” a podcast dedicated to helping filmmakers make somebody’s next favorite movie. He is also the Visual Content Manager for Special Olympics New Jersey, an organization dedicated to competition and training opportunities for athletes with intellectual disabilities across the Garden State.