As a Navy wife who’s called Newport, Rhode Island “home” three times, I’m a sucker for thick Boston accents, and adore glimpses and sounds that remind me of my days living there, where I ate lobstah, chowdah, and had a wicked good time despite feeling terribly cold all winter long. When I saw the preview of the film Manchester by the Sea, I instantly felt like I was transported back to New England, a place where people are who they appear to be, where it seems that no one has the desire or need to be fake or pretentious; besides the beautiful fall foliage, I’ve always considered it to be one of the most charming aspects of that region.
Casey Affleck, known for being Ben Affleck’s kid brother, has an impressive acting resume, but is usually not one of those actors who people reference as being their favorite. I’ve never thought, “Oh, I should go see that movie because Casey Affleck stars in it,” nor have I ever heard anyone gush about Casey Affleck being a heartthrob.
Same goes for Michelle Williams, who I watched regularly during her Dawson’s Creek days, but haven’t seen her since she was nominated for best supporting actress for her role in Brokeback Mountain.
After hearing all of the hype about Manchester by the Sea, I was expecting that Casey Affleck and Michelle Williams would be on my list of favorite actors. Don’t get me wrong, they both did an incredible job with their respective roles, but the movie itself was sooooo depressing. Given the choice to watch it again or go to my next mammogram, I’d happily choose the latter. (A mammogram at least is over sooner.)
Affleck plays Lee Chandler, an unassuming maintenance man who unexpectedly finds himself as his nephew Patrick’s guardian. Throughout the course of the film, viewers learn why Lee is hesitant to return to Manchester-by-the-Sea, and why being in charge of the teenage Patrick causes Lee so much turmoil. Yes, he loves his nephew, but is Lee just too broken from his own heartache to mentor Patrick at such a pivotal point in his life?
Michelle Williams plays Randi Chandler, Lee’s former wife. Like Lee, Randi too has been crushed by a tragedy too cruel to imagine, yet she tries to reach out to her ex-husband as he shoulders the pain of losing his brother. She has crossed the fine line between just being alive versus living, and seeing her again is a painful reminder to Lee of his gut-wrenching loss.
The scenery in the film was utterly stunning, making me yearn to return to New England again. The acting was superb, and I have no doubts that Affleck and Williams will both receive Academy Award nominations for their roles. Maybe their acting was too good because I felt like the tension, discomfort, heartache, and stress the characters experienced was palpable. I just can’t bring myself to say that I liked the movie though because it was just too sad, and there wasn’t that one moment that I had hoped for, where things would suddenly start turning around for the characters. Maybe that was the point, to be realistic instead of optimistic, but it was definitely a downer to watch, even if the acting was on point.
My friend Kris, who attended the movie with me, was deeply moved by the film. She reflected, “Lee has chosen to be alone since his life changing disaster. With the death of his brother, his Band-aids have now been pulled off of unhealed wounds. His character left a heaviness in my heart. On the plus side, this movie shows how when you are at your lowest, your can pull yourself out of your rut, if not for yourself, then for someone else.”
Movie times: click here
Genre: Drama
Director: Kenneth Lonergan
Actors: Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Kyle Chandler, and Lucas Hedges
Rating: R for language throughout and some sexual content
Running Time: 2 hours 17 minutes
