
Lee Chandler is a brooding, irritable loner who works as a handyman for a Boston apartment block. One damp winter day he gets a call summoning him to his hometown, north of the city. His brother's heart has given out suddenly, and he's been named guardian to his 16-year-old nephew. As if losing his only sibling and doubts about raising a teenager weren't enough, his return to the past re-opens an unspeakable tragedy.... (Full plot summary below)
FREE with your Prime (USA) subscription or when you start a 30-day free trial!
Links compiled using automated software. Availability of offers subject to change / might be region specific / out of date.
Lee Chandler is a brooding, irritable loner who works as a handyman for a Boston apartment block. One damp winter day he gets a call summoning him to his hometown, north of the city. His brother's heart has given out suddenly, and he's been named guardian to his 16-year-old nephew. As if losing his only sibling and doubts about raising a teenager weren't enough, his return to the past re-opens an unspeakable tragedy.
Leave your thoughts about Manchester by the Sea.
| El Pais (Spain)Carlos BoyeroA self-indulgent and irritating film of someone bent on telling a tragedy in a different way, stripping it of melodramatic resources. [Full review in Spanish] |
| El Mundo (Spain)Luis MartínezLet's call this a strange artifact, much deeper, lucid and relevant than a simple drama. [Full review in Spanish] |
| Adelaide ReviewDavid 'Mad Dog' BradleyWhile terribly, even hauntingly painful at times, Manchester by the Sea is also generously funny, which is rather odd given that it's a film about grief, self-loathing, forgiveness and not-so-happy families. |
| News.com.auWenlei MaManchester by the Sea may be a potent examination of grief, family and self-imposed solitude, but it's also oddly life-affirming and uplifting. |
| Graffiti With PunctuationBlake HowardCasey Affleck's performance in "Manchester By The Sea" is one of the most effectively crafted portrayals of the crippling weight of grief in recent movies. |
| Student EdgeSimon MiraudoEmotionally gruelling-yet somehow still funny-Manchester by the Sea magnificently covers the wide expanse of human experience. |
| Sight and SoundNick PinkertonWith an outstandingly icy Casey Affleck as a mournful loner drawn back into his old fold, Kenneth Lonergan's New England community study is a masterful, darkly American account of a heart in the dead of January. |
| MediaMikesMichael A. SmithFeaturing award-worthy performances from its three leads, "Manchester by the Sea," is the perfect drama to off-set a multiplex full of Bad Santas and Dwayne Johnson. |
| The Arts DeskJasper ReesFor all Lonergan's storytelling skills, Manchester by the Sea stands or falls on its central performance. Casey Affleck, outstandingly skilful at keeping his cards close to his chest, packs immense power into a study of incurable grief and guilt. |
| Sky CinemaAndy PsyllidesAs painfully sad as all this sounds not once does the film feel forced or overdone. Yes there's tragedy, but it always sits believably alongside the everyday. |