Thelongestfilm.com – Manchester by the Sea. Wanting to always live happily is the most noble and common munajat for every human being. But life doesn’t always go according to plan.
Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck) was previously an outgoing man and had a happy family. He is the father of three cute children, a warm husband, and an uncle to Randi Chandler (Michelle Williams) and Patrick Chandler (Lucas Hedges).
However, Lee’s figure changed completely when a tragedy befell his family. And this is the heaviest bitterness he has experienced in his entire life.
Lee turned into a silent, expressionless figure, complete with an occasional blank stare. The condition exacerbated by emotions that suddenly explode when they meet someone who considered to have intimidating eyes about their past.
With an easy-to-enjoy back-and-forth plot, ‘Manchester by the Sea’ is one of the strongest drama films. This story takes the audience deeper and deeper to know who Lee was—who went through the steepest trials and turned him into another person.
When Joe Chandler, his older brother, died of a heart defect, Lee, who had lived alone because of being separated from Randi, even had to return to the small town where his deepest trauma emerged.
Lee is now a plumber repairman and must return to Manchester, Massachusetts. He required to be the guardian of his nephew, Patrick, who also lives alone because his mother, who is still alive, has long abandoned his father.
In the past, Lee and Patrick’s relationship was so warm. The three of them often went on a boat with Joe or just went fishing until late at night with their boat at sea.
But after Joe died, Lee is now experiencing an inner war because once again he has to become a parent. He mandated to be Patrick’s surrogate father.
Manchester by the Sea: Spoiler Alert…
We now know why Lee depressed to the point of wanting to commit suicide. This premise makes this film quite heartbreaking.
After giving the most prime and riveting role as the central character in ‘Gone Baby Gone’ (2007), ‘The Assassination of Jesse James’ (2007), or ‘Out of the Furnace’ (2013), Casey is back in the craze in this Kenneth Lonergan film.
It’s no wonder that Ben Affleck’s younger brother one of the Oscar-winning actor candidates, which will held on February 26. This is because previously Casey had mostly stepped aside from the main roles other than the films above—even having time to become the director of ‘I’m Still Here,” which caused a lot of problems.
Only in ‘Manchester by the Sea” is Casey, who had starred in ‘Interstellar’ (2014) by Christopher Nolan, back in the lead again in a film. Even though the main role in the film was for Casey’s close friend, Matt Damon, who also produced this project,
Earned six nominations for the Oscars
But it feels like this actor change actually made this film the most talked about before it won six nominations for an Oscar. Casey managed to play a character with heartbreaking trauma. His calm face actually haunts the audience because, behind it, Lee’s character has a myriad of gloom and fragility.
The young actor playing Patrick, Lucas Hedges, is no less charming. It was Lucas who actually made the limping relationship (from harmonious to rigid) between nephew and uncle interesting; their debates and conflicts felt close because, from the start, the premise made us care about the characters in it.
If you look closely, the scene of the two arguing about the postponement of Patrick’s father’s funeral is actually very sentimental. From there, Casey and Lucas seemed to have very strong chemistry. Michelle Williams’ brief appearance was no less strong than the two dominating actors earlier.
Written by Kenneth Lonergan himself, Lesley Barber’s classical music score brings out a strong element of drama. The cinematography that Jody Lee Lipes also seduces can make you want to go home soon to keep your family close.
