When it comes to working-to-middle class British interpersonal dramas, filmmaker Mike Leigh is a tough act to beat.
As the writer/director of all his films, Leigh has tackled how families are affected by inter-racial adoption issues (“Secrets and Lies”) to how the overly enthusiastic exasperate those around them (“Happy-Go-Lucky”), and even an examination of the tumultuous working relationship between Gilbert and Sullivan (“Topsy-Turvy”).
Though his inspections of human interactions have a tendency to reveal the loneliness of existence, they always do so with utmost respect towards their characters and an honest approach towards life’s cruelties. That being said, Leigh’s existential assessments often conclude with a sincere glimmer of hope. His latest film, “Another Year,” is a further such example in his oeuvre.
“Another Year” follows an aging married couple, Tom (Jim Broadbent) and Gerri (Ruth Sheen), throughout the entirety of a full year and the friends and family who permeate their lives. These interactions run the gamut from their content son Joe (Oliver Maltman) to Tom’s depressed friend Ken (Peter Wight).
The performances shine all around, with a naturalistic connectivity between the main players. What makes the film stand out in particular is Gerri’s co-worker/friend Mary (Leslie Manville), who can’t seem to grasp why her life isn’t living up to her expectations.
Like Hitchcock’s “Psycho” before it, the film’s conniving technique of leading the audience to believe Tom and Gerri are the main focus is revealed over time to be false: Mary is the character Leigh brings us back to repeatedly in order to show the need and ultimately the capacity for growth.
As the viewer waits for Tom and Gerri’s dissatisfactions with life to reveal themselves, they never do. Rather, how the two support those unhappy souls around them is their true role. A character such as Mary, with all her insecurities and woes, needs to comprehend why she is unhappy by realizing the importance of human connection via Tom and Gerri.
“Another Year” will not appeal to all viewers, primarily because of Mary’s character’s need for honest introspection. But like Leigh’s previous entries, the film asserts that while most people live unfulfilled, unhappy lives, the ability for a chance at true contentment is available once we embrace our limitations and ultimately, our selves. A-
Ari Silber is a Loyola MBA student.Before graduate school, he worked for nine years in the Los Angeles film industry, focusing on marketing, publicity and distribution.
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