We Live In Time

 

This review may contain spoilers!

We Live In Time is a romantic drama that follows Almut and Tobias' relationship through different points in their lives. We journey in a non-linear manner through their meeting, discussions around having children and Almut's struggles with ovarian cancer.

There's a lot that defines a great romance, and it all rarely hinges on familiar elements of style like other genres. Here it's all on the chemistry. Almut and Tobias are two characters gravimetrically pulled into one another's orbit, they make so much sense. The little moments of tenderness, seeing them fall in love, the hard conversations, how their personal lives intersect with their lives as a couple, their move towards parenthood and even facing the finality of death. It all makes sense through how these characters share in one another's existence; in this way, We Live In Time is one of the more grounded romance films I have seen in a long time. The film revels in the levity of life with moments like how Tobias and Almut meet or the birth scene in the gas station (my favourite scene). It pairs beautifully with moments of tragedy dealt with in a familiar manner: parents struggling to explain cancer to a child in a family restaurant or talking about getting a dog to offset the grief explaining cancer might involve. I was sincerely moved by the hard moments of the film too; watching the battles with sickness was very hard, or the grief Tobias and Almut shared when they had to cancel their wedding or even the argument held over Tobias talking about kids too soon. This film is so raw in how it impacts you because it only knows how to be completely sincere in the narrative it wants to weave.

Director John Crowley has reached a new visual threshold with the style of this film, it feels very lively and picturesque all at once. I loved how the film blended gentle, vibrant colours with contrasting moments of greys and blues, showing the see-saw of emotion this story presents. The editing sets a neat pace and makes the non-linear storytelling easy to follow. I was a big fan of the heart held within the film score, the music within this reads the emotional tapestry and paints colour to it. The soundtrack is a real treat, some gentle ballads give this more of an indie romance vibe I enjoy.

Florence Pugh, who played Almut, is a phenomenal lead who has to present a woman at one point going through pregnancy and another ovarian cancer; it is a raw physical performance that is so resilient and will leave you feeling hollowed out by the end. Grace Delaney, who played Ella, is such an adorable child actress; she really quietly resides in scenes and lifts them up with positivity. Lee Braithwaite, who played Jade, is clearly a bit amateur but does well in their role; there's a portrayal of fierce loyalty and camaraderie with Pugh which I admired. Douglas Hodge, who played Reginald, is quite a neat fit as Garfield's on-screen Dad; he shares this beautiful story of love at one point that really moved me and speaks to Hodge as a character actor. Nikhil Parmar and Kerry Godliman, who played Sanjaya and Jane, are the finishing touches on the ensemble of the gas station scene; without these two that scene wouldn't be my favourite part of the film.

However, the best performance came from Andrew Garfield, who played Tobias. This is a gentle character, a man who seems very earnest and reserved all at once. Garfield's portrayal of him as a man struggling with the imminence of divorce in a comedic yet sad way was brilliant. Through this moment we see the truth of Tobias, he grapples with big points of conflict in his life but really quietly or awkwardly navigates them. His initial nervousness and charming approach to a relationship with Almut (Pugh) is very sweet. In fact, across the whole thing, their chemistry is what this film lives or dies on. And wow, does it live. Even how he argues changes from abrupt moments of confrontation to gentle anger boiling below the surface; all of which he manages without ever feeling aggressive. I also treasured his portrayal of grief, his grief for the wedding they would never have and his grief for Almut. More than anything, I gotta applaud every single second of the gas station scene it was a real win for me that Garfield dominated.

This film almost flirts with being a slice-of-life film at times. Showcasing the lives of two very likeable, almost healthy individuals can make it hard to find tension. The film feels downright sluggish in sections of the second act because there's no bite to be had here. This is a film content showing the mundane, which can lead to some mundane scenes, which can lead to a bored audience. Then in the final act, it really pivots a bit too harshly, by making Almut the one sparking the conflict. Almut hides she has been competing in her culinary field, she has decided they will cancel the wedding and the parallels to Tobias' first wife and how she left him are all there too. It's all a bit harsh and makes the audience question whether Almut is selfish in a way that feels a bit too cruel in terms of tone.

Adam James, who played Simon Maxson, feels like the piece that doesn't fit in this; the whole celebrity chef pushing ambition thing real was an odd flavour in this mix.

It's an intertwined snapshot of life that equally fills you with love and a warm kind of sorrow. I would give We Live In Time an 8/10.