Manchester By The Sea

Manchester by the Sea (2016)

96% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 244 reviews)

Runtime: 137 minutes

Directed by: Kenneth Lonergan

Starring: Casey Affleck, Lucas Hedges, Michelle Williams, Kyle Chandler, Gretchen Mol

From: Roadside Attractions/Amazon Studios

I went and saw 4 movies today. One of them was Hell or High Water, which I saw last summer and I don't need to review it again. By tomorrow night I'll post the reviews of the two others. I wish I could have seen the quartet of movies with a better/less annoying crowd, but alas... I also wish I could have enjoyed this better. Eh, oh well. It wasn't the only disappointment of the day, as you'll find out tomorrow night. Why I didn't like this is explained below: 

As I did in 2014 and 2016, I went and saw one of the two Best Picture Showcases that AMC Theatres presented. This is where at select locations AMC presents half of the Best Picture nominees in a marathon. At least where I go (Disney Springs on Walt Disney World grounds) it's held in a large auditorium of almost 350 seats and it always comes close to selling out; no wonder this is the 11th year AMC has held this event. Yesterday, I got to see this film, Fences, Hell or High Water, then La La Land. As I saw Hell or High Water this past summer, I won't be reviewing it again; I can say I still rate it highly after a second viewing. Tomorrow I'll review the other two films.

I realize that many people reading this are shocked I don't have this rated 5 stars, as most around these parts love the movie. To be honest, I haven't seen either of Lonergan's previous films before. I'll be honest here and say that if You Can Count on Me and Margaret are filled with nonstop awkwardness, A-hole characters, people usually yelling and screaming at each other, inappropriate humor, and constant dropping of the F-bomb... I honestly would rather not see them. It's a shame this movie did not win me over, as the general idea of a broken man trying to repair his life and dealing with suddenly have to raise his 16 year old nephew is a nice one.

Obviously most disagree but I thought most of the characters you see in this film are gigantic A-holes and people I did not want to spend time with. If it wasn't for some great scenes throughout the film and quality performances from Casey Affleck and Lucas Hedges as the leads (and Michelle Williams in her supporting role), I'd rate this even lower. Those moments help elevate this to technically a score I say is “fine” but watching such an unpleasant movie was not enjoyable for me even if I thought that the lead character's ultimate decision was an appropriate one considering the circumstances and how he was always an awkward human being and after that horrific event he was probably forever damaged.

I can also say that the movie did look nice & the Massachusetts setting was scenic. Last month a pair of people I knew (not Letterboxd members by any means) saw the film and didn't like it at all. I did not pry them for details. I at least can give some compliments; besides what I already mentioned, I was fine with how there were flashbacks throughout that progressively showed the audience why Lee Chandler acted the way he did. I did not know beforehand what awful event happened which explained why he wasn't a family man anymore like he was in the earlier flashbacks. I did not complain with how brutal that moment was; I just wish the score during that 10 minute segment wouldn't have been so loud and overbearing; I thought subtlety would have been better there. It's not my only complaint with how music was used, to be honest.

I am fine with other people loving this; me, it's far too abrasive for my tastes to ever want to watch this again.