We Live In Time is a truly heartbreaking British drama

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Almost a decade after the Oscar-nominated film “Brooklyn,” Irish director John Crowley has returned to the romantic drama genre. His latest work, “We Live in Time,” is the director’s attempt to elevate the genre into a newer narrative form.

While “We Live in Time” follows the tradition of far-reaching love stories like 2011’s “One Day” or the classic romantic comedy “Harry and Sally…”, it uses a non-linear narrative to bring love and life to the forefront brings his relationship to the present in the form of classic British romantic dramas. The film may not be greater than the sum of its parts, with weak character building throughout, but it remains a truly heartbreaking drama with the usual emotional performances from Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh.

The film follows chef Almut (Pugh) and divorced Weetabix employee Tobias (Garfield) through their love problems over a decade. In the first minutes of the film, shortly before the meet-cute, Almut is diagnosed with cancer when she hits her future lover with her car.

But because the sequence of events is intentionally jumbled, Crowley and the film focus on the circular nature of love. A three-act romantic story can have the same effect, even if you see them near the end, before they start dating.

The carousel that featured the viral horse meme in the film’s promotional materials is an apt metaphor for the entire story. At this moment, Almut and Tobias experience a moment of joy and true love, but the carousel keeps turning, which means that joy and love will not last and pain and suffering will take their place. Eventually, after enough adversity and suffering, love will return.

The nonlinear structure serves these themes well. While the story is not chronological, Almut and Tobias’ feelings for each other change both positively and negatively. A scene in which the couple is trying to spend precious moments can be immediately compared to a scene in which children are born. Ideas about love can change over time, both positively and negatively, but a general acceptance of going with the flow can return lovers to a place of true happiness in the face of dire circumstances.

Garfield and Pugh portray this dynamic well, where they have to go from scene to scene, drastically changing their emotions based on the characters’ history at that point. Garfield taps into a wellspring of emotions that can relate to viewers whose family has had cancer – most people, that is.

Pugh, on the other hand, has made a career out of playing women who are trapped in one way or another. In 2019’s “Midsommar,” she plays a woman stuck with a gaslighting boyfriend, and in 2022’s “Don’t Worry Darling,” a dumpster fire, she becomes trapped in a simulated world where men are their Being able to live out nuclear family fantasies from the 1950s.

But “We Live in Time” changes and internalizes the dynamic for Pugh. Her character is caught in an imbalance between love and time. The pain and discontent that Pugh explores seem to come from experience, adding more reality to a love story that already seems largely grounded.

When Almut develops cancer, she finds it difficult to prioritize love or her career as a chef, highlighted by an artificial dilemma in which an international cooking competition and her wedding to Tobias take place on the same weekend. While Pugh is able to internalize these conflicting feelings, it is at this moment that “We Live in Time” begins to lose its footing in excessive depth. Of course, there are cases like this that happen in real relationships. However, the situation feels underdeveloped and forced to create a form of tension only found in films.

Additionally, the surrounding characters and circumstances could use more detail to make a clear statement about love. Tobias talks very vaguely about his first marriage and briefly explains why he and his first love didn’t stay together in the end. But it is never mentioned again and the opportunity is missed to show how one’s experiences can evolve with love and time.

Despite its shortcomings in crafting the characters’ backgrounds, We Live in Time feels quite content with its position. The film aims to take a light approach to big ideas about love and time, but still remain rooted in the classic tradition of whiny British romantic dramas. Crowley, Pugh and Garfield all know this and they use their creativity and emotions to create a romantic adult film that will make hearts beat faster.

Published October 22, 2024 at 9:58 p.m

Contact Henry: [email protected]