Elizabeth: A Portrait in Parts film review – an elegant tribute to the Queen
Directed by the late Roger Michell, this documentary is ‘insightful, mischievous and assembled with panache’
Made by the team behind the “excellent” Spitfire (2018), this “powerful” documentary looks at another legendary war plane: the Lancaster bomber, which first saw service in 1942. And it is surely no coincidence that it has come out in the same week as the new Top Gun film, said Matthew Bond in The Mail on Sunday: “after all, the daring dam busters raid of 1943 – carried out by 19 Lancaster bombers – was unarguably the Top Gun mission of its day”. Directors David Fairhead and Ant Palmer have got the tone “just right”; they mark “the bravery and skill of the aircrew” while acknowledging that Bomber Command’s raids on German cities remain controversial to this day.
The surviving aircrew speak openly about their struggle to reconcile “their often crucial contributions to the war effort with the human toll it took”, said Alistair Harkness in The Scotsman. After the War, “people looked at you like you were a murderer”, remembers one. I am not sure you need to see this film on a big screen, but these first-hand accounts do make it worth seeing.
With its “encyclopedic detail” and Charles Dance’s “commanding narration”, Lancaster can feel like a film for war buffs and aviation enthusiasts, said Cath Clarke in The Guardian. But there’s a universal appeal in the stories of the airmen and the risks they took: 55,573 out of 125,000 of them were killed during the War. And for Dam Busters fans, there is “extraordinary footage” of the test runs in Kent of Barnes Wallis’s bouncing bombs. Yet this is not a “jingoistic” documentary, and it also records the testimony of a German woman who witnessed the aftermath of Lancaster bombing raids on Dresden: “The dead lying around in heaps. Mountains of dead people who burned to death.”
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-war
Talking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
-
Crossword: September 14, 2025
The Week's daily crossword puzzle
-
Sudoku medium: September 14, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
-
A tour of Sri Lanka’s beautiful north
The Week Recommends ‘Less frenetic’ than the south, this region is full of beautiful wildlife, historical sites and resorts
-
Giorgio Armani obituary: designer revolutionised the business of fashion
In the Spotlight ‘King Giorgio’ came from humble beginnings to become a titan of the fashion industry and redefine 20th century clothing
-
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale – a ‘comfort’ watch for fans
The Week Recommends The final film of the franchise gives viewers a chance to say goodbye
-
The Paper: new show, same 'warmth and goofiness'
The Week Recommends This spin-off of the American version of The Office is ‘comfortingly and wearyingly familiar’
-
Rachel Jones: Gated Canyons – ‘riotously colourful’ works from an ‘exhilarating’ painter
The Week Recommends The 34-year-old is the first artist to take over Dulwich Picture Gallery’s main space
-
Born With Teeth: ‘mischievously provocative’ play starring Ncuti Gatwa
The Week Recommends ‘Sprightly’ production from Liz Duffy Adams imagines the relationship between Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe
-
Art review: Lorna Simpson: Source Notes
Feature Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, through Nov. 2
-
Jessica Francis Kane's 6 favorite books that prove less is more
Feature The author recommends works by Penelope Fitzgerald, Marie-Helene Bertino, and more