The life of an un-ambitious adult man gets thrown for a loop when he receives some terrible news that will change his life forever. In “Manchester By the Sea”, the latest film from award-winning writer and director Kenneth Lonergan, the life of a solitary Boston janitor Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck) is transformed when he returns to his hometown to take care of his teenage nephew Patrick (Lucas Hedges) after receiving news of a fatal accident that claimed the life of his loving brother Joe (Kyle Chandler). Joe has left his brother with the responsibility of raising his son, and dealing with the past that cost him the relationship of his ex-wife Randi (Michelle Williams). With his newfound responsibility in tow, Lee must turn his life and priorities around to not only keep his brother’s legacy alive, but to also find clarity within himself to be the man he always had the potential to be. “Manchester By the Sea” is rated R for adult language and some sexuality.
Kenneth Longergan’s newest sure-fire Oscar-worthy effort “Manchester By the Sea” channels the three stages of grief within all of us when it comes to haunting loss. The themes of anger, regret and humor are a continuing stance when it comes to his depiction of loss within this movie, and the hollow void that everyone must fill following impactful change. The writing here is superior to anything that Kenneth has done up to this point, and his relationship with loss feels more human than anything I have seen in recent memory. This isn’t a story for the heroism in all of us, or the transition into being something that you’re not. This is very much a devastating and moving portrayal of many lives being changed for the bitter by the loss of a singular person that binds them together. The backdrop of a frozen tundra of Massachusetts Winters is certainly a poetic stance, not only on durability of our characters, but also on the ideal that loss is endearing, it’s chilling and it’s a slippery slope of after effects that forces us to take an inevitable look at our own lives and the things that we could’ve changed.
That examination comes in the form of Lee, and two sides to this unorthodox narrative that tells us everything from his past, present and future that we seek to understand. Longergan’s method of storytelling shouldn’t be undersold here. He is very much telling two stories for the price of one, and both are equally as engaging as they are riveting. It’s rare to find an example where I was as equally invested in past and present day films like I was in this one, and I think a lot of that has to do with the abundance in questions that we have for our main protagonist to shape the man we see transforming literally before our very eyes. The film reaches its dramatic peak midway through the second act, and it’s in that moment when we begin to understand not only why Lee finds great difficulty on accepting his newfound responsibility, but why this important loss in current day hasn’t leveled him to crippling anger. The answers were very satisfying along the way, but I realized after that important and revealing scene, we have reached the emotional peak for the entirety of the film, and that’s something that I had minor disappointment with. I will get to the performances later, but the movie walks on pins and needles accordingly to mimic our character’s awkward position, but never gives us that moment of explosion that burns forever in the loins of a man searching for reason. With that said, the movie’s pacing was outstanding, and very leveled with how much it had to tell over 132 minutes. There were never any moments when I wasn’t glued to the screen and its dramatic black hole that sucked me into its resonating agony every single time. This is a movie for the grievers, and that crowd will feel comfort in the very honest and moving approach to the way Lonergan views these events.
What’s refreshing about this sit is that Lonergan displays a wide range of comedic material to counterbalance the roller-coaster of emotions that he puts his audience through. I mentioned earlier that humor is one of the many methods of dealing with loss, and this movie’s daring but rewarding approach to laughing through some of these painful moments is something that I applauded in great detail. Normally, this kind of direction would put the film’s dramatic effect in great danger, but I think Kenneth understands the timing and importance of a good laugh between the showers of melancholy. The material is well-timed, and even slightly audacious, but I respect any director who can play against cliche layering in any kind of drama and give the audience something more satisfying during the appropriate times. There’s no shortage of awkward scenes in the movie, and Kenneth’s approach to startling humor is a welcome raft to the otherwise therapeutic dip in deep dramatic waters. It’s something that should at least earn him an Oscar nomination this March.
This is also a beautifully shot film, with lots of endless scenic shots of the harbor and the Manchester seaside that plays a great deal of importance to the script. The cinematography by Jody Lee Lipes is tinted slightly grey to further enhance the decay of the greying Winters. This shading is symbolic later on when the greens of grass and plants start to enhance in the very same way that our characters find love in their own fledging relationships. Accompanied by a beautifully stirring operatic musical score by the great Lesley Barber, and you have the perfect setting that will undoubtedly open many people’s ears to the world of opera when played against so many swinging emotions. Both of these choices weigh heavily on artistic direction for the movie, and it never feels less-superior or limited by the script that is front and center, giving us visuals that are every bit as appealing as the twisting roads that our taking place in front of us.
With any Oscar contending drama, you get no shortage of noteworthy performances, and “Manchester” is certainly no different. Casey Affleck, where have you been all our lives? Affleck has certainly made a name for himself in dramatic turns like “Gone Baby Gone” and his Oscar nomination for “The Assassination of Jessie James by the Coward Robert Ford”, but in “Manchester” he is asked to carry more of the load both in screen time and emotional response. Affleck is a mumbling rock at first, but as the film carries more weight on his torturous past, the hands start to move in a ticking time-bomb. Casey plays this role very reserved, but I don’t think it took away from his lasting impression. There isn’t a moment of breakout, runaway glee for his Oscar chances, but his cold embrace of a town and people he shunned long ago asks for the audience’s forgiveness as much as it does those he abandoned, and Affleck is up for the task. There are certainly those characters who we all relate to from time-to-time, but Lee’s similarities to not only my life, but my similar actions left me unsettled and gasping for air in the relatable roads that his character has taken to my own. Besides Affleck, Michelle Williams offers a brief but memorable turn as Affleck’s ex-wife who harbors her own painful memories of the past. Williams sadly isn’t in the movie long, but her ability to shed tears at the drop of a hat should earn her consideration once again as a mainstay in the Best Supporting Actress category. The breakout role of the movie however, is Lucas Hedges as Lee’s sarcastic nephew. The relationship between these two is very engaging for how they banter off of one another, but it’s in those moments of solo scenes where Hedges displays a range far greater than his age. Patrick is someone who doesn’t quite grasp the value of what he has lost, but when he realizes just how alone he is in the world, Hedges is able to turn on the personable charm that makes us intrigued in his full-bodied character. He is proof that teenagers still hold a valuable place in dramatic cinema.
“Manchester By the Sea” treads waters of simple storytelling to offer the audience a complex scenario in love-and-loss. Lonergan’s heavy, ambitious script crashes like waves against the emotional highs and lows of life’s ever-changing stories. A compassion for characters who grieve and receive love to carry on through tragedy. With a hearty performance by Affleck, Lee shows us that life goes on even when it feels impossible.
9/10