In Quincy, the quiet and ruthless janitor and handyman Lee Chandler (Casey Affleck) is summoned by George (C.J. Wilson), who is a family friend, to go to Manchester since his older brother Joe Chandler (Kyle Chandler) has had a heart attack and is in a hospital. When Lee arrives, Joe has just died and Lee makes arrangements for the funeral with George. Then he seeks out his sixteen year-old nephew Patrick (Lucas Hedges) at the hockey training to tell the news. They go to the morgue and then they head to Joe's lawyer to learn his will. Lee is surprised that Joe has assigned him to be Patrick's guardian. He is reluctant and neither wants to stay in Manchester nor deliver his nephew to his alcoholic mother Elise (Gretchen Mol) and decides to bring Patrick with him to Quincy. However the teenager does not want to leave his life in the town. While planning Joe's burial and funeral, Lee is haunted by his past in Manchester, where he happily lived with his wife Randi (Michelle Williams) and three children until the day a tragedy happened with his family. What will be his final decision?
"Manchester by the Sea" is a realistic film with a tragic and depressing story and no redemption for the lead character. The plot is well resolved for his beloved nephew Patrick but never to Lee, who does not forgive himself for what happened to his family due to his negligence. The direction, screenplay using flashback to explain Lee's behavior and performances are top-notch. Many viewers would expect a more optimistic and happier conclusion but the author chose only a better improvement in the lead character's attitude toward life and this might be the reason of great number of bad reviews. My vote is eight.
Title (Brazil): "Manchester À Beira-Mar" ("Manchester by the Sea")
"Manchester by the Sea" is a realistic film with a tragic and depressing story and no redemption for the lead character. The plot is well resolved for his beloved nephew Patrick but never to Lee, who does not forgive himself for what happened to his family due to his negligence. The direction, screenplay using flashback to explain Lee's behavior and performances are top-notch. Many viewers would expect a more optimistic and happier conclusion but the author chose only a better improvement in the lead character's attitude toward life and this might be the reason of great number of bad reviews. My vote is eight.
Title (Brazil): "Manchester À Beira-Mar" ("Manchester by the Sea")