Manchester by the Sea

— This is one of the more complicated films I’ve seen lately and certainly it’s of a different mold. A man’s death brings his brother home to a small New England town by the sea where he learns he’s been named the guardian of his brother's 16-year-old son, a job he’s ill-equipped to handle. The plot sounds more like a Hallmark movie than a look at simmering dysfunctions and forgiveness. Casey Affleck is incredible as Lee Chandler, the main character who is barely able to function on his own, much less overcome the wounds of the past. Throughout the film there are plenty of flashbacks, letting the larger situation unfold, but there’s no real transition from present to past, just a new scene that takes a second to realize where we are in time. In fact, the past is splashed all over Lee’s present. There are plenty of places at which to chuckle or laugh, half of them slightly inappropriate but funny nonetheless, and there are small signs that Lee may be emerging from his despair as well as signs he may not. But instead of triumph, of overcoming what’s life throws at someone, it’s a film that looks at wounds that can’t be healed and things that can’t be forgiven, at irreparable damages. It’s also one of the better films I’ve seen this year. (I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention one scene, between Lee and his ex-wife as they meet in the street and the conversation veers into traumatic territory. It’s one of the most powerful scenes as much because of Michelle Williams abilities as Affleck’s.)

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[2016. 137 min. Written and directed by Kenneth Lonergan. Starring Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Lucas Hedges, and Kyle Chandler.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/manchester-by-the-sea-2016