Manchester By The Sea
Kenneth
Lonergan is a name that I didn't recognize because I've never seen any
of his work. So basically for me, this film came out of the blue. Its
getting early award buzz especially for Casey Affleck in the lead role.
And I've got to say, its well deserved. The film is shot in and around
Massachusetts, which genuinely looks beautiful in the film. Even the
scenes involving winter just looked so gorgeous, serene, and real. Real
is a word I think springs to mind for this film because its so genuine
and just seems like an everyday story of a guy you might know. Affleck
is a great actor, I enjoy a lot of his work. There was no way I was
going to be let down by his performance. Its so effortless; Affleck
just embodies the role of a distant loner of a man who is surrounded by
grief. New responsibilities come upon him with the death of his brother.
He isn't just haunted by this event in the present but also by
harrowing events of his past. Affleck's Lee Chandler gets a character
study that never tries to be overbearing with its emotion. Yet there's
pain in his eyes throughout the film.
Lonergan
uses flashbacks throughout the film, which seems to be a popular (yet
prosperous) form of storytelling. Events of Chandler's past are
intertwined with the present. The film does enough of a job of showing
why this troubled, down out of luck man, is overcome by the tragic
circumstances of his life. Michelle Williams is not in this film for
long but she is great in a spectacular scene with Affleck in its third
act. Even Lucas Hedges is great in the film. Hedges and Affleck's
interactions bring the humor in what should be an otherwise dark film
(but it really isn't). Without spoiling anything, there are two scenes
that pack a punch and they both are very short. I don't think this film
treads any brand new ground but it does what it needs to do and it does
it very well. I've been wrong about Oscar predictions in the past but
surely Affleck is the frontrunner for Best Actor.
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