Manchester by the Sea is a film I’ve been waiting to see for a while now. It’s a sad story that actually gets sadder as more of the character’s life is revealed. The film is beautifully shot and emotionally acted by a talented cast. Manchester by the Sea earns the Not Quite Golden, Ponyboy rating.
Manchester by the Sea is a sad story
Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck) is a handyman in Boston who receives a phone call that his brother, Joe (Kyle Chandler), is in the hospital again. Before Lee could make it to Manchester his brother dies, which is when Lee finds out he’ll be the guardian of his nephew, Patrick (Lucas Hedges).
I enjoyed, well it’s hard to say you enjoy a movie that’s about such a tragedy, but I liked this film. Lucas Hedges and Casey Affleck really stand out with excellent performances. Lee is often emotionless, but manages to insert some awkward humor and then extreme anger. He often is rude to many people, but he simply just wants to be left alone. Lee has a drinking problem and manages to function okay, but often finds himself in the bottom of a glass. Patrick and Lee seem to love each other, but there are definitely a lot of issues.
Patrick has a couple of girlfriends and lots of friends plus a band and two sports teams. He’s a lively kid, but is struggling to deal with the loss of his dad and the pending changes to his life. Hedges really plays the character well. The most emotional scene featuring Patrick involves a freezer that’s overflowing with meat and Patrick suffering a panic attack. Lee doesn’t know how to deal with it, but definitely is worried for Patrick’s well being. It’s a credit to writer/director Kenneth Lonergan who manages to interject humor even during such an intense scene.
The use of flashbacks are an affective way of revealing Lee’s past
While the boys are dealing with the current tragedy, flashbacks provide insight into Lee’s antisocial and self destructive behavior. We see his life before we met him where he is married to Randi (Michelle Williams) and has three children. They seem dysfunctional still and Lee’s alcoholism is apparent, but they still seem to be happy. The story that follows as the film moves on is even more tragic than how the film begins. It adds a lot of sense to why he’s afraid of being Patrick’s guardian and why Lee had no interest in any of the women who were clearly interested in him back in Boston.
Lee changes a little through the course of the film, but there isn’t a major arc in the film. I have found that the films I rate as Must See often have a story that has some major impact on me emotionally. That emotion varies from humor to sadness to hope, but Manchester by the Sea didn’t resonate with me in that way. I do recognize how great the film is from writing, cinematography, and acting. Yet, it’s not a story I think everyone needs to see nor is it particularly life changing or thought provoking. In no way am I saying the film is bad, but I just can’t justify the Must See rating for the film. Nevertheless, if the premise interests you or you want to see some extremely great performances then it’s definitely a great film.
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