"Manchester by the Sea" (2016) - Writer-Director Kenneth Longergan's Exploration of Lead Actor Casey Affleck's Extreme, Complex Grief

[DIShGo]

I went to see "Manchester by the Sea" with a group of friends, not knowing anything about it. I didn't even know what film we would be seeing as I stepped up to the booth to order my ticket. I was just along for the ride with a group of women who usually choose good films.

I am sure there will be Oscar buzz about this film, as it is the type of movie the Academy adores. It deals with very serious issues, and the actors, for nearly all of the film, are allowed to display their chops, portraying unfortunate souls filled with anguish and angst.

Grief, and the inability to move on after death, are the major themes in this film. Casey Affleck (Ben's younger brother) gives a wonderful performance as a man who cannot move on. Affleck's character, Lee Chandler, is the most depressed person I have ever seen on film. His gloom wears on you as you watch the movie. I saw this film on a day when I was feeling blue. I do not recommend anyone else do the same.

There are touches of humor in the film, particularly in scenes where Chandler is interacting with his 16-year-old nephew. Patrick, brilliantly portrayed by Lucas Hedges. The dialogue between these two is touching and real and occassionaly laugh-out-loud funny. But these light moments are few and far between, and are overwhelmed by the tragedy in the film.

Affleck and Michelle Williams, who plays Lee Chandler's ex-wife, Randi, give moving performances as a couple badly damaged by the tragic twists and turns of life. But I fully expect the major buzz this award season to be focused on Hedges. This talented young man is a gifted actor who gave an award-worthy performance, scene after scene, in this film.

If you love to watch good actors act, you probably will enjoy this film. I can't say that I recommend it, however. It was depressing and dragged in spots. The score is over the top. There is one particular scene, intended to tug on your heartstrings, where the soaring violins are so obnoxious, the music took my mind completely away from the story. Instead of being moved to tears, I was annoyed by the music and the producers' overwrought attempt to manipulate my emotions with it. 

[DonRocks]

On 12/8/2016 at 9:42 PM, DIShGo said:

The score is over the top. There is one particular scene, intended to tug on your heartstrings, where the soaring violins are so obnoxious, the music took my mind completely away from the story. Instead of being moved to tears, I was annoyed by the music and the producers' overwrought attempt to manipulate my emotions with it. 

This is a vivid and very descriptive piece of criticism - I can picture *exactly* what this scene is like (not knowing anything about it), and I *hate* things like this - they are so obnoxious and manipulative, and they never work (at least not on me). This alone makes me not want to see the film.

[DIShGo]

2 hours ago, DonRocks said:

This is a vivid and very descriptive piece of criticism - I can picture *exactly* what this scene is like (not knowing anything about it), and I *hate* things like this - they are so obnoxious and manipulative, and they never work (at least not on me). This alone makes me not want to see the film.

This isn't something I usually notice. Generally, I allow myself to get swept up in the story, music and all, and find myself rummaging through my purse for some hankies. So for me to notice this, it had to be over the top. 

[DIShGo]

Casey Affleck's opening monologue on last night's SNL where he jokes about how "Manchester by the Sea" is "a testament to how sad a movie can be."

 

[DonRocks]

"Manchester by the Sea" is Writer-Director Kenneth Lonergan's heart-wrenching masterpiece about the extended, complex grief which Lee Chandler (played by Academy Award Winner Casey Affleck) was forced to endure - the type of grief that no one should ever have to experience, and one of the worst things imaginable. He tackles this subject with a mastery that only someone who has experienced such a thing could write and direct, and I wonder if he has been through something comparably horrible (Lonergan won the other Academy Award for "Manchester by the Sea").

This film is extremely difficult to watch, as the audience is sucked into the vortex of Chandler's tragedy, and must live it with him - this is not the type of picture for those in the mood for something lighthearted, but it captures the nuances of complex grief nearly perfectly, although each occurrence of complex grief is highly individualized. 

The acting is wonderful, top-to-bottom, the music fits the gloomy, stark mood, and the setting is just about perfect.

PS - FWIW, I didn't mind the soaring violins. I asked DIShGo which scene she was referring to, and I had guessed the wrong one. Usually, I detest blatant attempts at manipulation such as this, but although some of the choral music in this film was quite intense, the entire film was like something of a wake, so it somehow worked for me.

*** SPOILERS FOLLOW FOR THE REST OF THE POST ***

I read where many viewers felt "cheated" that there wasn't a traditional ending for this movie, and that the film merely fades out while Lee and his nephew Patrick (brilliantly played by Lucas Hedges) were sitting on a boat. But that is about the most realistic "ending" there could be - what do people expect, a "bang?" Complex Grief is something that you don't get over; it's something you deal with, and it rarely, often never, goes away - on his dying day, even if it's thirty years into the future, Lee will have thought about what happened every single hour of every single day, and his entire life will have been lived under a dark cloud - that's the way this works. Many people think I've been dealt a bad hand, and I have, but it isn't quite *this* bad; however, our member Magdalena has been dealt a hand every bit as bad as this (I'm about the only person here who knows the extent of what she has suffered through) - I've seen what happened to her, we keep in touch several times a week, and I frankly don't know how she has made it to her 81st birthday. I distinctly remember, not long after Member Number One passed away (and this is only part of what Magdalena has been through, btw), her having told me that she was getting a mammogram because of a promise she made to her late daughter; I also remember her telling me that she prayed that the test came back positive for breast cancer, and she meant it - this was over fifteen years ago. When her time comes, she will not have spent a single happy day since the year 2001 - there will have been moments which bring her joy, of course, but only moments.

Anyway, all this rambling to say that the fade-out ending was the only intelligent ending there could have been; a suicide would have been an insult to this beautiful, nuanced film. (The suicide attempt in the police station, early on, however, was perfectly justified and made perfect sense.) When you're dealt a hand *this* bad, your personality changes, you become a better human being in most ways, but you're forced to live each day with a stoicism because you're no longer "living"; you're merely "existing," and the instinct to exist is strong in humans.

Both Hedges and Michelle Williams, who played Lee's ex-wife, Randi, received nominations in the Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress category, respectively. With Hedges, it was a slam-dunk nomination; Williams, however, got much less screen time, and her nomination hinged on mostly one scene - the one where her maternal instinct kicked in and she had a child, but she nevertheless broke down and told Lee that she still loved him, and that she was as sorry as she could be for the things she previously had said to him - that was a riveting scene, and I suspect that it, alone, got her the nomination, not undeservedly, either.

[DIShGo]

On 7/26/2017 at 5:58 AM, DonRocks said:

*** SPOILERS FOLLOW FOR THE REST OF THE POST ***I read where many viewers felt "cheated" that there wasn't a traditional ending for this movie, and that the film merely fades out while Lee and his nephew Patrick (brilliantly played by Lucas Hedges) were sitting on a boat. But that is about the most realistic "ending" there could be - what do people expect, a "bang?"

Anyway, all this rambling to say that the fade-out ending was the only intelligent ending there could have been; a suicide would have been an insult to this beautiful, nuanced film. (The suicide attempt in the police station, early on, however, was perfectly justified and made perfect sense.) When you're dealt a hand *this* bad, your personality changes, you become a better human being in most ways, but you're forced to live each day with a stoicism because you're no longer "living"; you're merely "existing," and the instinct to exist is strong in humans.

***SPOILERS FOLLOW***

A couple of friends with whom I saw the film didn't think it should end with suicide or a "bang." They hoped, instead, that Lee would stop being a janitor, become Patrick's guardian, stay in the nicer home, and fall in love with the kind woman who had shown interest in him. In other words, they were rooting for a happy Hollywood ending that would tie up the story with a neat bow. 

I am glad it didn't end that way. The ending felt real and appropriate to me. Although Lee isn't going to become his nephew's legal guardian, the bond between them is strong and will survive. In this way, the ending felt realistic and hopeful.

On 7/26/2017 at 5:58 AM, DonRocks said:

***SPOILERS FOLLOW FOR THE REST OF THIS POST***

Complex Grief is something that you don't get over; it's something you deal with, and it rarely, often never, goes away - on his dying day, even if it's thirty years into the future, Lee will have thought about what happened every single hour of every single day, and his entire life will have been lived under a dark cloud - that's the way this works.

***SPOILERS FOLLOW***

Yes, I agree, but Lee was dealing with complex grief AND guilt. It was this combination that made his life so unbearable, and convinced him that he could never be an adequate guardian for his nephew, whom he loved with all of his heart.

[Sundae in the Park]

We couldn't get through it. We knew what was "coming," but once we hit the tragic reveal we had to stop. As recently new again parents it was just too much of a drain on our emotions and free time. Normally I'm all about the Boston-area movies, as the accents and familiar mannerisms briefly take me home, but even for the wrenching performances completing the movie wasn't worth it for us at this particular time.