Lee (Casey Affleck) is a janitor living in Boston. He is a conscientious worker but seems disconnected from the world. When his brother Joe suddenly dies he has to travel back to his home town, Manchester by the Sea. There, he finds his brother has given him guardianship of his 16 year-old nephew, Patrick (Lucas Hedges). Lee is not prepared for that and Patrick has no interest in uprooting to another city.
The bare outline of the plot does not do this film justice. It could have been an overly sentimental story of Patrick understanding how to cope with his grief and Lee learning how to open his heart to someone. The film, though, is much more subtle than that. The characters are complex, full of rough edges but are people to really care about. The screenplay, by Kenneth Lonergen, who also directs, is hugely impressive. Raw and emotional but with moments of hilarity, it is as fine a piece of work as I’ve experienced in some time.
A special mention needs to go to the casting director – Douglas Aibel – as it is one of those films that is perfectly cast down to the smallest of roles. Every character feels totally believable from the nurses at the hospital to Patrick’s hockey coach played by Tate Donovan, C.J. Wilson as Joe’s best friend who is telling in every scene and Hedges is perfect as the intelligent, sometimes petulant teen.
Michelle Williams has picked up a supporting actress nomination despite being in a film a little more than 10 minutes as Randi, Lee’s ex wife. As well as being an Academy favourite, I think that is largely down to one amazing scene where she bumps into Lee in the street. It is an acting tour-de-force as a tearful Randi tries to tell an awkward and conflicted Lee that she still has feelings for him.
Having said how good all the other actors are, it is also true Casey Affleck dominates the film with an amazing performance. He totally inhabits the part of Lee and is able to express his feelings of grief and frustration with the smallest of gestures. Just seeing him not knowing how to stand and hold his arms when he visits the morgue tell more about his feelings that any amount of grand speeches would.
Perfectly paced, beautifully directed and totally compelling, Manchester by the Sea is an early film of the year contender.
Rating: 9.5 out of 10