This film is by far one of the most emotional films I have ever watched.
Before I went to the cinema, I’d seen a few TikTok’s on this film and I was expecting to cry whilst watching it because of this. I am not an emotional person typically, but boy, did this film affect me. I watched this film and I cried and everyone around me in the cinema did too. It’s safe to say, many were moved by this film regardless of age.
The film follows the lives of Almut (Pugh) and Tobias (Garfield) and their love story, and then the truly heart breaking diagnosis Almut receives.
This film encompasses elements of a romantic comedy film, but with a huge amount of slice of life in it too. So I found it hard to actually define the genre. The only film I could somewhat compare it to is One Day which is a hybrid genre of romance, comedy and melodrama too.
There was so much humour in this film which took me by surprise, but it isn’t the actors actively attempting to encompass it, it’s just naturally put in, which really creates this relatability element. When we think about it, humour is a crutch that many lean on in their darkest moments, I know that I personally do this. This film is quite literally about incredibly sad moments, and the humour I think, is organically put in as a coping mechanism.
The way this film conveys emotion so well is truly down to the acting of Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh. At moments I forgot I was watching a film, I was truly convinced it was real life – So so authentic! I think all aspiring actors need to watch this film, because how Garfield and Pugh brought this film to life is truly amazing.
The structure of this film is unlike any other film I have ever seen before and that’s stayed with me this past week since watching ‘We Live in Time’. Time in this film just continuously jumps back and forth and at first, I struggled to actually see where the narrative was headed. Time is a motif in this film, which is of course hinted at in the title itself and, how time flips between Almut (Pugh) and Tobias (Garfield’s) initial meeting, to a scene where Almut receives a diagnosis, to them living together all within a few minutes of screen time, is truly astounding.
I think that the lack of a chronological order to the film is there to mirror memory and how we remember people who we’ve lost in our lives. We remember the good times without chronology which is exactly what this film does. The structure did help to lighten the film a bit as this film with a linear structure, could have certainly been even more heavy and heart-wrenching, and if it was, I’d have been a blubbering mess!
The ending to this film is so abrupt, and that serves a tremendous purpose, of showing that life can have abrupt endings. Pugh as Almut, is given a choice to accept treatment or to not but either way she knows she doesn’t have long left so, the ending isn’t surprising. Although, I for one, was rooting for a medical miracle because I didn’t want to come to terms with the fact that we weren’t going to see a ‘happy ever after’ in this film as we conventionally almost always do. We truly feel like Almut has been robbed of time with her loved ones, which is so true to loss.
This film portrayed relationships, grief and joy in ways I have never seen before in a film and I’d strongly urge anyone who hasn’t seen this film to watch it.
This film serves as a reminder to love boldly and fully always, to hold on to precious memories of loved ones, and to hug a loved one whilst you still have the chance.
‘We Live In Time’ is still showing in cinemas and you can watch the trailer here:
