Lancaster

The documentary has developed in recent years to become far more cinematic with the emphasis on the drama of the story with innovative direction and writing. This has lifted it away from its traditional television home to the cinema screen relying less on talking heads, rather using narration over the visuals. Top of the list has been Asif Kapadia with his ground-breaking films on Senna, Maradona and Amy Winehouse.

There is however still room for the more traditional and that is where Lancaster lands with plenty of contributions and a narration from Charles Dance. It is however very cinematic with some beautiful aerial photography.

The makers also combine extracts from films such as the Dambusters with actual operational footage which works well to enhance the scope of the documentary. If it has stylistic similarities to the 2018 documentary Spitfire that is because it was made by the same people, Anthony Palmer and David Fairhead.

As old school as this may be is it refreshing as there is little in the way of academic intervention. The story is told by the surviving bomber crews and people who we involved in the operations. Their contributions are vivid and candid and at times incredibly moving.

What this means is that there is the authenticity of first-hand accounts that aren’t subject to subsequent academic interpretation, such as questioning the highly controversial bombings of Hamburg and Dresden. These were horrendous events and it is enlightening to hear the crews recount their feelings about these missions and the outcomes.

Lancaster is also as much about war and the characters involved as the bomber with sections on Guy Gibson commander of the Dambusters, Bomber Command and Sir Arthur (Bomber) Harris and Churchill. Despite admiration for their skills, none receive overwhelming ringing endorsements for various reasons

Churchill - maybe surprisingly - getting short shrift. The feeling was that once Bomber Command had served its purpose, no longer politically useful he set it to one side. A resentment that lingered with its achievements and contribution to ending the war being overlooked for decades. It wasn’t until 2012 that Bomber Command and the 55,000 killed were honoured with a memorial in London.

Lancaster will be in cinemas and digital from 27 May and Blu-ray and DVD from 30 May.