By Cameron McCollum | Photographer
Going into the theater, I was expecting to sit down and enjoy a drama-romance film with two lead actors who have incredibly diverse, award-winning, critically acclaimed film portfolios. When the friend next to me said the theater in her hometown was providing courtesy tissues, I knew I was in for a truly emotional cinematic experience.
Readers beware! This review contains spoilers.
“We Live in Time” captivates audiences with the beautiful life story of Tobias, played by Andrew Garfield, and his partner Almut, played by Florence Pugh, reminding us how to love living in the present despite the realities of longing and loss.
This A24-produced film, directed by John Crowley and written by Nick Payne, is told cinematically through a non-linear storyline. With scenes consistently skipping through different fragments of time between Tobias and Almut’s relationship, audiences are given only the bits and pieces of what is to come.
Almut works as a critically acclaimed chef and is aspiring to earn the highest trophy in the European culinary world while Tobias is a spokesperson for his company. Fatefully, the characters first meet each other after Almut hits Tobias with her car, landing him in a neck brace and arm sling.
One noticeable aspect of the film is the layering of themes throughout each time skip. It almost felt like separate storylines that all come together in the end as the full story of Tobias and Almut. The characters react to each other in many different ways, from love at first sight to fight at first fright when Almut is diagnosed with cancer. The combination of trials and tribulations with joy and passion couples experience throughout their years is beautifully displayed in this film.
The true beauty behind “We Live in Time” is in its cinematography. One flaw in modern film is the lack of emotional expression used with color hues. However, Crowley’s lighting design shows the hope and depression the characters experience without having any words for the audience to digest.
The film also uses diverse handheld camera techniques for scenes that must draw in audiences while Hallmark-esque framing dominates euphoric scenes.
Plot-wise, I was surprised by the integral theme of parenthood throughout the film. As an audience, we are introduced to the conversation most couples have further on in their relationship: “Do we want kids?” Whatever your thoughts are on this topic, Tobias and Almut’s journey from giving birth in the most unlikely of places to ice skating as a family for the first time will give most viewers teary eyes.
Also — viewers be warned! “We Live in Time” has just as many sex scenes as it does barfing scenes, so if you are going into the theater with a queasy stomach you may want to pack a barf bag along with your tissues.
The conclusion of the film brings Almut’s character full circle as she accomplishes her biggest culinary challenge yet: being a mother who will never be remembered as weak and a person who will never be able to say that she gave up.
This film is a romantic fast-burn that catches flame quickly and captures the strange nature of time unfolding. We all live within the construct of time, and the film serves as a reminder of that — to live as much as we can while we can.
