John Crowley’s British weepie sees the director reunite with BOY A star Andrew Garfield for a non-linear journey through the ups and downs of love, where an ambitious chef and a helplessly optimistic divorcee navigate their relationship across childbirth and a reoccurring cancer diagnosis. While the non-linear storytelling device doesn’t add much depth or gravitas to the film’s dramatic events, Garfield and Florence Pugh provide enough charisma to push audiences through some of the story’s more preposterous conceits.
The sight of the A24 logo brings with it certain expectations. While the studio has branched out into several diverse genres, horror has become its stable speciality, with Ari Aster’s HEREDITARY and MIDSOMER helping to establish the indie company’s powerhouse status. But A24 isn’t a stranger to more unconventional romantic tales, with MOONLIGHT and PAST LIVES proving that the studio can attach itself to thoughtful journeys of self-discovery and beauty.
Although WE LIVE IN TIME doesn’t manage to reach the ethereal heights of those examples, it nonetheless presents a charming, romantic portrait of intimacy and awkward pauses. After an unconventional meet-cute where aspiring chef Almut runs down an unassuming, dressing gown-clad Tobias with her car, they converse in a hospital ward. The two eventually get to know each other through food-related courtship, whether that involves amusing Weetabix foreplay (Almut’s friends make numerous jibes about Tobias’ work as a Weetabix data cruncher) or eating Jaffa Cakes in the bathtub.
All these events take place across a non-linear timeline, with Cowley’s film entrenched in mannered British accents throughout, although the camera often stops to focus on the two lovers’ expressive, unspeaking and engaging faces. However, the time changes don’t add much complexity to the overall plot, with some gaps only creating more tonal incongruities, such as Almut’s somewhat amusingly timed car crash undermining her shocking cancer diagnosis that came before it.
“…the time changes don’t add much complexity to the overall plot, with some gaps only creating more tonal incongruities, such as Almut’s somewhat amusingly timed car crash undermining her shocking cancer diagnosis that came before it.”
However, Garfield and Pugh are practiced actors in film, having starred in commercial superhero flicks as well as more arthouse-focused award darlings, and their chemistry breaks through the occasional jarring time jump. While Garfield emerged on the big screen with more talkative roles like THE SOCIAL NETWORK, his quiet, concerned looks towards Pugh evoke his wonderful, understated roles in NEVER LET ME GO and SILENCE. Pugh repeatedly proves her range whenever she’s on screen, evoking angst and cynicism with a single eyebrow raise. She reportedly had her head shaved for the role and refused to wear a bald cap despite scheduling conflicts with the upcoming THUNDERBOLTS, even though timing eventually worked out due to writer strikes.
The cancer portrayal generally avoids the sentimentality of various other cinematic interpretations of the disease, even though you don’t need extensive knowledge of cancer/romance films to see where the narrative is going. While we never see the full bald head after Almut’s chemotherapy sessions, the images of her vomiting as a result of her treatment seem refreshingly novel in the current landscape of film. So far, WE LIVE IN TIME and Jonathan Levine’s 50/50 seem to be the only major productions brave enough to depict this debilitating side effect of cancer treatment on screen.
“The cancer portrayal generally avoids the sentimentality of various other cinematic interpretations of the disease, even though you don’t need extensive knowledge of cancer/romance films to see where the narrative is going.”
The plot ultimately centres on the prestigious Bocuse d’Or cooking competition that Almut trains for without Tobias’s prior knowledge, placing her ambitions ahead of her family, hoping to leave her daughter with a lasting memory of her mother’s achievement. At this point, the non-linear narrative falls away, leaving the standard linear time frame. The battle to prepare all the meals on time becomes linked with Alma’s struggle to weather her deteriorating health as she progresses with each dish. While the music works to create a decent amount of emotional heft here, the general soundtrack (composed by The National’s Bryce Dessner) leans into the indie atmosphere to the point of distraction, with tunes from Wolf Alice and Villagers not so subtly cementing the vibe of the film. However, this isn’t enough to detract from Garfield and Pugh’s central performances, as they work together to dispel most of the tired cancer cliches with a heartfelt, moving tale of love and loss.