Steve McQueen’s visually dazzling tour de force is a moving and expansive tapestry of British life during the decisive moments of the Second World War.

In the face of nightly air raids, East End mum Rita (Saoirse Ronan) grows increasingly worried about her son George’s safety. Under the counsel of her father, Gerald (Paul Weller), she makes the heart-wrenching decision to send him to the countryside. But a few hours into his journey, George alights the train, determined to return to Stepney Green and his family. Friends and foes stalk London’s streets, but each encounter populates George’s map of his world, giving him an understanding of how his fellow citizens are affected by these tumultuous times.

McQueen’s incredible ensemble cast includes Kathy Burke, Benjamin Clémentine, Harris Dickinson and Stephen Graham. They inhabit a war-torn London that’s impeccably realised by Adam Stockhausen’s (12 Years a Slave, Asteroid City) production design and Yorick Le Saux’s (A Bigger Splash, Irma Vep) cinematography, while Hans Zimmer’s score revels in the scale and intimacy of the director’s vision. But the film’s trump card is newcomer Elliott Heffernan, who captures George’s emotional strength, impish humour and sense of loyalty to his family with a wisdom beyond his years. Through him, McQueen’s Blitz represents one of the finest portrayals of life in a moment of crisis, perseverance and renewal.