Manchester By the Sea (2016)
4/5- Very good lots to enjoy
Director: Kenneth Lonergan. (15).
Synopsis
Years after he accidentally kills his three young children in a house fire, Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck) finds himself as the legal guardian of his teenage nephew Patrick (Lucas Hedges) after his older brother (Kyle Chandler) dies of a heart condition.
Despite being emotionally shut-down since his own tragedy, he and his young charge slowly come to terms with the situation life has dealt them as they get used to living with each other.
Review, by Jason Day
Star Casey Affleck has just scooped the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture (drama), so he is a possible shoo-in for an Oscar win for this New England-set piece.
It's not the easiest of performances to give, let alone for an audience to warm to, with frequent pauses and deafening silences. But warm to him we do, and that is mostly down to Affleck not trying to win our sympathy, but quietly and richly earning it.
Through minutely observed and occasionally very funny scenes of the tiny details of an emotionally barren life, Affleck and writer/director Lonergan conspire to make moving and interesting what, on paper, sounds like the most torpid of dramas.
Its a slow-burner, yes, but settle down and it will all start coming together winningly. For more, read the full review here
Cast & credits
Director: Kenneth Lonergan. 137mins. The Affleck-Middleton Project/B Story/Big Indie Pictures/CMP/K Period Media/Pearl Street Films.
Producers: Lauren Beck, Matt Damon, Chris Moore, Kimberley Steward, Kevin J. Walsh.
Writer: Kenneth Lonergan.
Camera: Jody Lee Lipes.
Music: Lesley Barber.
Sets: Ruth De Jong.
Casey Affleck, Lucas Hedges, Kyle Chandler, Michelle Williams, Gretchen Mol.
