Manchester by the Sea: A Drama Filled with Realism
After doing some research on Kenneth Lonergan, what I mostly noticed about him is the fact that he has always been a great writer. Movies like “Gangs of New York,” and “Margaret,” were films known for their exceptional script. With that in mind, “Manchester by the Sea” was bound to be a drama filled with realism. Not only was he writing it, but he was also directing it as well.
“Manchester by the Sea” follows a down out of luck plumber named Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck), who just recently experienced his brother’s death, Joe (Kyle Chandler). Chandler must now take care of his nephew Patrick (Lucas Hedges), however Lee’s dark past creates hesitation for the situation.
The Review
What I most enjoyed about this drama was the sense of realism that Lonergan brought to the screen. Every character in this movie felt like real people. This was one of the least cinematic films that I’ve seen in a while which is a good thing. There were many times where I felt that I was seeing a real life event happening which created a good amount of authenticity.
Lonergan masterfully handles the flashbacks with the present day scenes exceptionally well. Every past event was important to the plot in some way, and we continued to learn more about each character because of that. I loved how Lonergan keeps the audience guessing especially when it comes to Affleck’s character. We know that he is a depressed person, but we really don’t know why until halfway through the film.
Although this movie was quite somber, there is still a good mix of comedy that keeps the audience from being too sorrowful. Every time there was a depressing scene, there would be some kind of laughable exchange between Affleck’s character and Hedge’s character immediately following it.
Something that I really want to touch on is the chemistry between Lee and his nephew. Although the nephew Patrick is quite ungrateful at times, we still see an interesting connection between him and his uncle. I like how Lonergan never felt the need to change either character and create a happy ending. It felt so much like life. Yeah, there is a few bumps in the road, but life goes on and there rarely is an enjoyable ending to it.
I also love how Lonergan never felt the need to add a hugely cinematic portion to the film. There was a scene where Lee had a talk with his ex-wife (Michelle Williams) about their past. This was one of the biggest scenes because of how subtle it was. Neither character changed their personality just for that part. I believe that this made it even more emotional than some scream fest. They both knew that mistakes were made, and had to move on.
All of the performances were breathtaking. Affleck is sure to win best actor for his subtle but strong character. Kyle Chandler was great as the brother who kept Lee on his feet when tragedy struck. Michelle Williams had a few impactful scenes as well. Lucas Hedges does phenomenal as the nephew trying to find a way to cope with his father’s death, while also learning how to survive adolescence. We see this multiple times where Patrick has two girlfriends, or continues to talk about his dad’s boat.
All in all, this will surely be in the best films of the year discussion. The masterful writing from Lonergan as well as the impactful performances from each character were the high points of the film. It was also quite nice to witness the Eastern Massachusetts landscape, and how people’s attitudes were affected by that. Overall, I highly recommend this insightful drama to any movie fan.
