Showing Realistic Grief - Manchester By The Sea

imagine a scene of dialogue at a funeral reception in one of the most heartbreaking movies of its year does it look something like this I'll get you something hey your name oh never mind forget it skip it what didn't what that's probably not what you imagined Manchester by the sea is a poignant study of the impact of grief on its characters lives there's a lot of great things about this film but I want to focus on how director Kenneth Lonergan uses realism to frame the impact that grief has on the characters spoilers ahead in a movie that primarily centered around the impact of several deaths on other people's lives there would be some obvious scenes that you could use for big emotional moments we see these all the time in movies funerals in the rain the wakes with poignant moments between characters the dramatic deathbed scenes those are all traditionally cinematic moments but lonergan subverts cinematic norms with his film during the moments that would play in most films as infinitely dramatic with teary close-ups punctuated by soft lonergan chooses to pull back he obscures dialogue with music creates distance using slow-motion [Music] and disrupts with humor [Music] a perfect example of this is the scene where Lee tells Patrick that his father has died as the audience we know what's happening but Lonergan doesn't let us connect with the emotion of the scene he forces us to watch from a distance unable to hear what the characters are saying and this tricks us into thinking we're watching a moment that's more real that hasn't been tampered with for dramatic effect in our lives our emotions don't follow a traditional act structure they don't happen on cue with the music huge events in our lives that are supposed to be emotional and foundational can also pass us by in a blur and they might be shrouded in dullness but those emotions can come back to us in quiet moments in real life grief doesn't end when the camera cuts away from the big moments Manchester by the seas cinematography reinforces this most of the movie plays out with wide shots but when we do get close-ups it's during the everyday moments visit to a lawyer's office a phone call actually me because you off I just feel like a little high a chance meeting on the street or a moment alone and lonergan purposefully disrupts our ideals of how the larger moments should play leaning away from making the story more dramatic including things that normally would be excluded from a film these mistake annoyances and funny moments are a part of real life they don't stop when it's time to have a funeral and when the movie doesn't focus on the grief in the big moments like we expect a movie to it feels less like a movie and more like reality making the characters grief feel all the more real and when grief does hit the hardest it often hits when we least expect it [Laughter] Lee's character is one who has purposefully distanced himself from his past in trying to distance himself from his grief I think the idea was that you would relocate relocate to Whitwell it's near it should well as you can see your brother worked everything out extremely carefully oh thank you yes yes that this movie shows us his journey back to Manchester back among these people the nonlinear storytelling illustrates how this triggers his memories forcing him to face his past and face his grief again the constant shots of a landscape and the setting of Manchester intercut with the unveiling of the tragedy and Lee's past helps us to understand how his grief is connected to the location in Manchester by the sea like in real life grief doesn't obey the rules Greece doesn't stop and start when it best suits the next beat screenplay structure Greece can sneak up on you returning long after you want it to and sometimes it's not there when it feels like it should be where's my brother please Josh go as you can see him if you want Lee is unable to deal with his creating a pattern of constant running but those left in the wake of his tragedy keep pulling him back forcing him to face his past and his issues and healing might be possible but it won't be cinematic it won't come from a moment like this one but it might come from a moment like this [Music]

Channel: Thomas Flight

Views: 351,072

Rating: 4.9763012 out of 5

Keywords: Manchester by the sea, Manchester by the sea essay, analysis, video essay, manchester by the sea analysis, Manchester By the Sea review, Manchester By the Sea Grief, Casey Affleck, Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the sea video essay, Manchester By the Sea Explained, Grief in movies, Manchester By the Sea realism, realistic, Every Frame A Painting, Nerdwriter1, Lessons from the screenplay, casey affleck video essay, Thomas Flight, Manchester by the sea sad, oscar, best screenplay

Id: yoVsnP3sa4k

Length: 6min 17sec (377 seconds)

Published: Mon Mar 20 2017

Reddit Comments

[u/[deleted]]

Affleck's performance was amazing. At first I thought he was simply playing a jerk, but as his past is revealed and we learn more about him, I could feel his grief. At the end, when he tells his nephew that they can't stay together because he "cant' beat it" i.e. his depression, I knew exactly what he meant.

[u/pmint23]

This puts into words what I couldn't describe when telling friends and family that they should see this. Thanks for sharing.

[u/rosefuri]

I think this might be my favorite out of all the best picture nominations, it felt so honest and real.

[u/lhoucomaniac]

The ambulance scene was one of the most touching scenes to me. It really hits home and makes it feel believable how the paramedics stumble and makes it really awkward for everyone else present.

[u/InHoc12]

Great video.

I really appreciate realistic dialogue and everything about the movie, but I just couldn't enjoy it.

I do enjoy sad movies too, but it was just heart wrenching sad and all the humor just hit too close to home for me. I don't know I just couldn't enjoy the movie.

[u/dudeguymanbro]

This video really opens up what made this movie a best picture nominee. Yeah, it's depressing, but it approached it in such a unique and realistic way that was refreshingly human. I've never had a movie make me feel how I felt after seeing this. A lot of emotion, and not all of it sad.

[u/dukeofbronte]

Thanks for sharing this---nice thoughtful analysis.

[u/Azrael_]

For people that enjoy character analysis over any other element of a film, this was a masterpiece. I certainly believe it is.

[u/[deleted]]

Its the small touches that made this so good IMO. The unimportant moments that made it feel more grounded e.g Lee forgetting where he parked his car, Paramedics bit, the band practice..