Manchester By the Sea (MA15+)
Starring: Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Kyle Chandler
THIS is pure and unapologetic Oscar-bait (and it’s already having success on the award circuit if you want proof).
A powerful central performance, beautiful stark scenery, moody music used sparingly and a sense of gritty realism that has you wondering which Manchester this is set in (let’s face it, gritty realism is more a British style than something usually associated with the US).
There is a big chance someone is going to go home with one of those little gold statuettes from this movie – well director Kenneth Lonergan (You Can Count on Me, Margaret), Matt Damon and his cast and crew have given it their best shot anyway.
Casey Affleck mumbles his way through two hours of “slice of life” viewing.
That’s not to say it’s not almost unintentionally funny in places, poignant, stark and well acted – it’s all that.
Slow, sensitive and insensitive in that “we’re not really acting” style, it’s a warts and all story about the working-class Chandler family.
At first it’s hard to know just why you should feel anything for Affleck’s broken, emotionless character until the well-handled pivotal moment when the penny drops and the tissues come out. But this is more a personal portrait of pain, rather than a tearjerker looking for sympathy.
Affleck plays Boston janitor Lee Chandler whose brother (played confusingly by Kyle Chandler) dies, forcing him to come home to Manchester By The Sea to look after his teen-aged nephew and face the demons he’s been running from.
Some of the best scenes are of him dealing with being a janitor and the best lines belong to his not entirely likeable nephew played by Lucas Hedge.
Michelle Williams once again proves she is one of the most versatile actresses out there as Lee’s ex-wife, but it’s Affleck’s movie and by the end of it, it is very easy to see why he earned award nominations despite his tainted reputation.
– Tania Phillips
