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Movie Review: Life as it is in Oscar front-runner “Manchester By The Sea”

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By Roger Costa

A teenage boy begs his uncle to be his guardian, as he’s in a state of abandonment, since his alcoholic mother left and his father passed away. The uncle isn’t sure whether he can deal with it, as he is also trying to get rid of his own traumas from the past, tragedies that still haunt him and have drastically affected all aspects of his life.

There’s a sense of loss and grieving throughout the narrative, confronting the characters in Kenneth Lonergan’s outstanding new film, “MANCHESTER BY THE SEA”.

The film opens introducing our protagonist, the janitor Lee (played magnificently by a mature Casey Affleck) with contemplative close-ups on him, unveiling his loneliness, complex rudeness and silent anger as he manages all sorts of problems over the troubled tenants’ apartments. After relieving himself in a bar fight, he gets a call from a family member, notifying of his brother’s death. On his way back home, he recalls the past through flashbacks, his journey as a dedicated brother and uncle, a good husband and father, but also a stubborn out of control man full of insecurities and inclined to harm. While making arrangements for his brother’s funeral he learns the deceased had stated on his will that he should be the guardian of his son, leaving him perplexed and overwhelmed with such dilemma.

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After his highly praised “You Can Count On Me”, writer-director Lonergan returns with this moving, undeniably beautiful and painful film that observes life as it is, a film carefully designed as a raw portrait of modern dysfunctional families, a dark canvas of the American way of life, and a statement on relationships, between men and women, old and young, parents and children. Lonergan’s marvelous screenplay has earned him the film’s first award this season, named Screenwriter of the Year by Hollywood Film Awards. Also at his favor, the luminous, bright, gripping, natural lights of the seaside area captured by the cinematography of Jody Lee Lipes, and the opera soundtrack and music by Lesley Barber punctuating the dark humor and desperately tragic situation.

Its powerful depiction of brotherhood, comradeship, confusion and loss of family values, sex, love, grief and forgiveness is evaluated through different perspectives mirrored on the characters, as well as a look at the differences between generations, analyzing the young boy’s exciting new experiences and the cold, saddened circumstances of Lee’s adulthood.

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Despite Lee is the center of the story, “Manchester by the Sea” develops a deep affection for the other characters, presenting a group of people dealing with common losses, as the aspect of abandonment appears as an urgent risk. The ensemble cast is outstanding, Lucas Hedges gives a triumphant performance as the young teenager, Gretchen Mol is irresistibly hilarious as his transformed mother, and Michelle Williams is stupendous as Lee’s ex-wife. I am betting they all will get Oscar nominations on the Supporting categories, as well as Affleck will lead the Best Actor race with his phenomenal complex, rude, hopeless Lee.

One of this year’s best and most accomplished films, “Manchester by the Sea” is one of those films that raise questions and discussions about contemporary issues (in this case, the importance of family, acceptance and forgiveness), a very unique and stylish portrait of human relations that will leave you thinking about it for days, or forever.

(Opens Friday at Angelika Film Center and Lincoln Plaza Cinemas, NYC)

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